


From the Stars

by Yacer_Sho



Series: From the Stars - A Hat in Time [1]
Category: A Hat in Time (Video Game), a hat in time
Genre: A Hat in Time AU, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Backstory, Deception, Emotional Manipulation, Found Family, Gen, Hat Kid Speaks Very Little, Hat Kid finally has a name!!, Hat Kid is a Princess, Humor, Jealous Friends, Mother-Daughter Relationship, Multiple Endings, Parent Snatcher, Past Brainwashing, Past Child Abuse, Queen OC is Hat Kid's Mother
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-02
Updated: 2019-07-30
Packaged: 2020-03-30 22:30:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 42,216
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19036903
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yacer_Sho/pseuds/Yacer_Sho
Summary: Hat Kid invited all of her friends to a play-date on the spaceship to hopefully resolve some differences each of them share. But when the Conductor sits at the Captain's chair and inputs the coordinates to Hat Kid's home planet on accident, the ship suddenly malfunctions and sends them there while ultimately breaking in the process, which means they will have to stay a while until it's fixed. Hat Kid's friends come to realize that she's a princess who ran away from home in her spaceship, her mom is a somewhat serious and suspicious queen... and that her name isn't actually Hat Kid.





	1. Welcome Home

**Author's Note:**

> There will be three different endings, like an Act in A Hat in Time. Think of this story as a DLC. There will be a Good Ending, a Neutral Ending, and a Bad Ending. They will be ordered accordingly to the situation. Hat Kid will only ever speak if spoken to, or if she wants to.

Hat Kid grinned as she offered another plate of cookies and a tall, cold glass of milk to Snatcher, who was currently sitting in her room atop her "Personal Pool of Pillows" as she liked to call it. The candles which had Snatcher's face on them flickered as Hat Kid nudged the plate and the glass closer to the purple ghost, obviously not wanting to waste perfectly good food for her friend who didn't seem like he wanted to eat it. Snatcher looked up from his book titled "How to Kill Kids" and frowned. "Kid, you do realize I can't digest those, right?"

The little girl wouldn't take no for an answer, so all she did was plop down next to him and munch on one herself to entice him enough to try a bite while rocking from side to side.

"Mmmm, tasty!" She exclaimed, before breaking one apart and dunking it into a glass of the milk.

Looking up at Snatcher, she bit down on the milk-drenched dessert and vocalized her enjoyment for the cookie by making another noise. The Snatcher, who was very displeased with how childish she was acting, let out a groan and finally made contact with her.

"Whatever you're doing isn't working, kiddo!" He exclaimed, angrily flipping the page of the book. But despite his best efforts, he allowed her to slip one of the sugary sweets into his "mouth" and the cookie disappeared into his ghostly flesh. Off in the corner of her room, Mustache Girl was jumping on Hat Kid's bed while accidentally hitting her head on the canopy above.

"Haha! Hey, Hat Kid, your bed is really bouncy! How do you even sleep on this thing?" Despite her best efforts, the girl fell off onto the floor below with a thud and clenched her teeth together before getting back up and brushing herself off with a painful expression.

"Remind me not to do that again..." And hobbled over to the pillows where she and Snatcher resided.

Seeing the plate of cookies, Mustache Girl swipes one without asking and takes a bite with a smirk on her face.

"You eat like a rabid animal." Snatcher grumbles while shaking his head. In almost an instant, the Conductor stomps inside, and even though he doesn't have eyes, his body language suggested he was definitely mad, no doubt at DJ Grooves.

"Ohohoho, my movies are bad? What about yours you no good bloody peck-neck!" He spat at the Moon Penguin, who just happened to come inside at the right time.

"Untalented director's just have that... aura about them, Conductor-darling. All I'm asking is that you and I make a movie together. Where we put style and action into one big movie," He pleaded, and then looked up at Hat Kid with a grin. "With her as the star!"

"No! She's either in my movie, or your movie! I ain't workin' with you or the Moon Penguins, it's either I keep my Express Owls, or I make nothing at all!"

In short, DJ Grooves and the Conductor were bickering as usual, but Hat Kid wanted to resolved their differences. That was why she invited them in the first place, but no matter how hard she tried, the Conductor never wanted to listen. On his own, he was a well-liked individual, albeit annoying with how much he wanted to put himself before others, and the fact he hated penguins for no good reason.

Mustache Girl and the Snatcher both shared confused looks with one another, but once Hat Kid stood to her feet and marched over to them her eyes narrowed and her lips curled into an frown, whilst also brandishing her blue umbrella, the Owl and the Moon Penguin quickly shut up and was chased back into the main bay where the ship overlooked outer-space. 

"Should we, ehm, follow them?" Mustache Girl inquired before taking another bite of the cookies Hat Kid had left. Snatcher laughed halfheartedly and took one for himself.

"No, no, the kid can handle herself-"

There was a loud crash and DJ Grooves yelling something, so the duo jumped from their sitting area and rushed back to the main part of the ship to help Hat Kid in the disarray. Snatcher, being nothing more than a ghost, could fly and go through portals and reach the other side quicker. From there, he could see that the hamburger relic had been knocked over and destroyed from the Conductor running away from Hat Kid's punishment, and the owl was currently sitting at the main controls trying to figure out how to land it and go home and as far from Hat Kid's friends as possible. DJ Grooves was consoling Hat Kid about her relic, whispering that he could find a way to fix it as she sniffled.

Mustache Girl finally arrived and she quickly ran over to the Conductor, her cape waving as she raced over to the owl with a look of fury in her eyes that she only ever gave to the Mafia Crooks. "You no good idiot, get off her control panel before you break something else!" Hat Kid didn't want to help.

"The number combination you have entered is invalid." The speakers said. She worked hard to get these relics into her home and she wasn't going to let someone, let alone someone as rude as the Conductor, be so egotistical that he won't feel bad about breaking her things.

Snatcher groaned in annoyance and mumbled, "Am I the only adult in this spaceship or is everyone just really childish?"

The Conductor stood his ground by continuing to hold onto the lever of the chair. He used his other hand to hit the mustached girl away and continually pressed random buttons to jump-start the spaceship.

"I'm trying to get off this stupid hunk of wood and metal! I'd rather be anywhere else in the world, in fact, anywhere else in the galaxy where DJ Peck Neck isn't here!" He turned around and pointed at the penguin, while continuing to press random buttons on the control panel.

"It's not like I want you to be here either!" DJ Grooves snapped back, putting his flippers on his hips.

Hat Kid looked up and watched the Conductor continue to mess with the control panel with tears in her eyes. This wasn't how things were supposed to play out. The five of them were supposed to play hide-and-seek, eat junk food, watch television and play games, but all they've done since they've came onto her spaceship was bicker or do their own respective things alone.

"Stop fighting..." She tried to say, but Snatcher butted in.

"Look, why don't we all just sign a contract that promises we all leave each other alone and help the kid fix her... hamburger pillow." The Snatcher narrowed his "eyes" and felt compelled to throw the Conductor out into space himself.

"Ugh, it's always contracts with you isn't it, you soggy purple noodle!" The Conductor exclaimed, finally shoving Mustache Girl away from him and pressing random buttons with more force.

"The number combination you have entered is invalid." It said again, only much more grainy and broken.

"You're breaking more of her stuff! Why do you have to be so mean-" Mustache Girl cried out, only for her sentence to be cut off by a beeping noise that sounded like a confirmation. The Conductor, unbeknownst to him, got the combination right.

"The number combination you have entered is valid. Now travelling to Home." At the mention of home, Hat Kid's eyes immediately widened and she sprang to her feet to force the Conductor out of the chair herself, but suddenly the ship went into hyperspeed and threw everyone but the Conductor back against the wall.

Poor Rumbi flew off the carpet and landed in the hands of DJ Grooves while making terrified beeping noises as the ship continued its long journey back to whatever Home was to Hat Kid, but she was dreading the thought of returning, and the look on her face said it all. A bright light appeared against the glass of the spaceship, and everyone closed their eyes to brace for impact, but it never came. Instead, the ship stopped abruptly, throwing everyone forwards and Hat Kid's hat flew off her head as she fell to the floor along with everyone else. Groaning in pain, the Conductor hobbled off the chair and noticed that everything was glowing red when it was normally green on her control panel. The lights flickered off and everyone was left in darkness despite the Time Pieces being safe and comfortable inside the vault.

"Is everyone... alright?" DJ Grooves asked, setting a very disgruntled Rumbi back onto the carpet floor.

Mustache Girl came to her feet and sighed while rubbing her bruising skin. "First I fall off the bed and now this."

Snatcher grabbed the Conductor by the collar and forced him to look out the window to a large, intimidating planet below. "Where did you take us? Where are we?"

Hat Kid grabbed her signature top hat off the ground and put it back on her head. No doubt the cookies and milk still in her bedroom would be strewn about, as well as all her pillows. "My home planet. Sehan." She said solemnly.

The group looked out at the large planet before them, wondering how and why Hat Kid would ever want to leave a place like that. Oceans and land masses covered the beautiful and serene planet, and by the looks of it the planet had a moon, and a half moon, obviously blown up using a very large and dangerous weapon.

"So we're stuck in a broken spaceship, with the lassie's home planet right beneath us-" A loud explosion caught everyone off guard. Hat Kid screamed and attempted to hide anywhere that wasn't going to allow the inhabitants to find her whereabouts. The explosion wasn't in the turbo-thrusters or a room managing to break away from the ship. Something or someone was forcing its way inside her spaceship.

"Darling, what are you so shaken up about?" DJ Grooves tried to coax her out of her hiding place but she only shoved herself further into the darkness.

In a matter of moments, three humanoids wearing breathing masks with weapons made a hole in her ship in order for them to squeeze through and figure out if it was a friend or foe that entered their atmosphere. The group gasped in fear and held up their arms to convey that they didn't mean the humanoids any harm, but the one in front came onto the ship first. It was a female, her skin as fair as the sandy beaches of Mafia Town, and her hair as brown as tree bark. The suit fit her figure comfortably, but she was quite curvy despite looking a bit old.

"You really think I wouldn't be able to recognize your ship, Seraphina?" The woman asked.

Her voice was like honey, yet it was loud and commanding.

Snatcher frowned and looked over at the kid as she was hiding. Her blue eyes were widened in pure terror, so on impulse, Snatcher shielded her using his large ghostly body as the mystery woman walked around Hat Kid's spaceship as if she owned it.

"Who's Seraphina?" Mustache Girl tried to ask, while also taking a step back in fear. The tall woman looked down at Mustache Girl but never said a word. Instead, she simply got out a flashlight and looked for Hat Kid. Her guards followed close behind her as she walked, their golden spears threatening anyone who dared to fight back. In her hiding spot, Hat Kid started to hyperventilate and tears started to form in her eyes as she got out her blue umbrella.

She lunged out of the darkness and practically phased through Snatcher's body with her umbrella tight in her hand, and she brought it down upon the mysterious woman. "Leave us alone!"

As if expecting the attack, the woman caught the umbrella in the air and threw Hat Kid down to the floor with it. The child let out a painful cry as she met with the floor with brute force, almost as if she met with lava. "Princess Seraphina, you know full well that I've been expecting you to come back. But I never expected you to bring your... companions along with you."

"P-Princess? Hat Kid ain't a princess she's a movie star!" The Conductor exclaimed, almost feeling the need to chuckle.

Hat Kid was breathing heavily as she tried to regain herself. Her arms were shaking as she attempted to pull herself up and she narrowed her eyes at the woman.

"A movie star? My, you've been making great strides haven't you, darling? Your ship malfunctioned trying to get this far. Oh, what would have happened if it stranded you out in the middle of outer-space?" The woman squatted down and took Hat Kid's chin in her hand, and used her other hand to take off her breathing mask. She was the perfect copy of Hat Kid, albeit older and much more intimidating.

"Your mother missed you so much, Princess Seraphina. It's so good to have you back, you and your friends."

Everyone gasped in sync, and Mustache Girl even went so far as jumping up and down. "Wait, Hat Kid's a princess, and she never told us? Wait, wait, wait, wait... then that makes you queen, huh lady?" 

The woman looked over at the excited mustached girl and smiled solemnly. She took her hand off of Hat Kid, or Seraphina, and walked over to Mustache Girl with a sense of wonder and compassion. Hat Kid tried to get up and rubbed her chin where her mother's gloved hand had been, but due to being so shaken after hitting the floor so hard, Snatcher helped her up. He hated queens for obvious reasons, and this one was no better.

The Queen looked down at Mustache Girl nodded, her hair moving as she turned to look at her daughter again. "That is correct. My name is Queen Ophelia, and Seraphina is a princess of Sehan, and my daughter. My one and only daughter."

As she smiled, the Conductor frowned as he realized what he had done. By inputting the coordinates back to Hat Kid's, or now that everyone knows her real name, Seraphina's home, he had reunited her with the one woman she hated most, her own mother.


	2. Mother Knows Best

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With Hat Kid finally coming home, her kingdom rejoices knowing they finally have their perfect little princess back. Unbeknownst to the kingdom, Queen Ophelia is manipulative, and uses whatever means necessary to keep her daughter well within her grasp, purely for her own selfish gain.

Although Queen Ophelia did not reign over the entire planet, her kingdom was so large that it was anyone's guess if she was allowed an entire continent to rule over due to the intensity of it all. The townsfolk were kind individuals and were more or less happy with their lives. They had roofs over their heads, full bellies, and seemed to possess jobs everywhere they went, as if they each had their own unique skill so that none of them were homeless. In a place as lively as Sehan, it was no surprise that the queen was well-loved by all her subjects. Cheers were constantly being thrown her way as her guards stood watch beside her, and to give her subjects some comfort she would occasionally wave at a child or accept a bouquet of tulips a florist surprised her with.

As much as Hat Kid didn't want to admit it, her mother seemed to be putting on an act to make herself seem like a tranquil or serene individual who puts the weight of the world on her shoulders with no stress at all. Aside from the horrible fact Hat Kid looked exactly like her mother, their personalities were obviously swapped. Queen Ophelia kept her head high like a mighty deity, almost as if she was looking down on her subjects while also being entirely equal to them both in body, mind, and spirit. The crown which lain atop her head was promised to Hat Kid when she was much younger glistened in the sunlight, the jewels creating a sort of reflection on her long, flowing blue dress.

As for Hat Kid, she had kept her hair up in a ponytail for more than three days, so there was no doubt a dent in place of where her hair-tie had been. Her back was somewhat slouched, as if hiding from the large crowd and staying close to the people she trusted most. Her outfit definitely looked worn and dirty, since she was so young she couldn't do laundry without overflowing the liquid soap compartments and creating a mess. Cooking Cat acted as her only adult, from cooking meals, cleaning the kitchen, etc. Hat Kid looked down at her outfit, almost displeased with herself that she didn't bother to take the varsity jacket from Nyakuza Metro since it was nicer than the only outfit she's worn since leaving Sehan.

Mustache Girl had taken a liking to her mother, mostly staying at the front of the group and asking the queen questions about what she does with people who try to overthrow the kingdom. The Conductor stayed as far away from Hat Kid as possible, obviously distraught with himself that he would go so far as to break her ship and reunite her with an evil tyrant for a mother all because he was fighting with someone who only wanted to help. He was twiddling his fingers together and occasionally looked over at Hat Kid with a regretful look on his face, but whenever he would try to say something to her Hat Kid would narrow her eyes at him and he would quickly turn around with his ears falling flat against his head.

DJ Grooves stayed close to her on one side and Snatcher was on the other, almost like they were bodyguards as well. Snatcher didn't want to admit it, but he wanted to make her feel comfortable in this new and dangerous place, and she was grateful. DJ Grooves would occasionally ask how she was doing without doing the obnoxious dancing, which was a surprise for a start, but she would only nod and fake a smile which seemed to calm his nerves, but Snatcher knew what tricks Hat Kid was hiding up her sleeve, so if she even dared to make herself seem fine, he'll point out how much of a mess she seemed to be right now. While doing his contracts for Death Wish, he's seen just how determined she gets when she wants something, regardless of how disheveled and worn out she looks. Without really meaning to, he drops a hint that maybe she should take a break and lie down after all the hard work she's done. But, she'll only shake her head like the annoying brat she is, and go on about her day.

As for the broken spaceship, it was taken in for repairs by the royal guard, but it felt wrong to be without it. Sehan's warships were ginormous compared to Hat Kid's, with her entire spaceship fitting inside the warship with room to spare. The spaceship was going to be brought to the castle bridge and stay housed in a large building to be fixed by professionals. The ship was her home, and was gifted to her by her father before he perished in a war. Rumbi was still on her ship too, most likely afraid of the strangers coming aboard to asses the damage. Hat Kid involuntarily winced at the thought of the mechanics finding the poor cleaning robot and dissembling it to find out how it worked. She regretted not bringing her bat from Nyakuza Metro on this journey, but having an umbrella would cause less suspicion.

Hat Kid listened to her mother give the tour of the kingdom she knew all too well about. She knew all these people before she left. There was the local baker's daughter who lived just up the hill named Abigail. A boy known as Timmy who was the son of a chimney sweep, there was the bookkeeper too. So many faces and people she recognized, albeit older now due to how long she's been gone. Someone threw a white lily towards Hat Kid, and she stopped abruptly as the lily lain in front of her on the cobblestone road. Grasping the hem of her long tunic, she looks up with her eyebrows furrowed and her sharp teeth biting her bottom lip. This was her favorite flower, one she had always requested to be brought to her room if she was ever feeling down. The townspeople remembered how much she loved this type of flower, down to the color.

As expected, the queen had glanced towards her daughter as if sending her a signal to pick up the white lily. Nodding, she bends down and picks it up carefully as to not break the stem on accident. The people in the crowd cheer at their princess accepting the one white lily thrown at her feet, but in her opinion she would much rather had been handed the flower. Queen Ophelia takes in a breath and smiles before turning around again.

Snatcher groans and taps Hat Kid on the shoulder. "You can get rid of it once we're through with this welcome ceremony, kid." 

She looks up at him with her blue eyes unblinking, as if she's trying to hold in tears. Gripping the lily tighter, she shakes her head like he expected her to. "No... I think I'll keep it."

~~~~~~

"As I've stated before, sweetheart, it is so wonderful to have you back in your mother's watchful gaze. For countless years I've been so afraid that something horrible happened to you out in space. I've sent so many search parties out there to find you, but no matter where they looked you just couldn't be found. Promise me you'll never leave us again, we missed you ever so terribly." Queen Ophelia stated, running the brush through Hat Kid's tangled brown locks again.

Hat Kid winced, her hair was still damp from her bath thirty minutes ago and the brush wasn't best suited for tangles. The two moons bathed her room in a creamy white light, and Hat Kid couldn't help but be mesmerized by the moon that was broken apart from the war. She was born before it, and her father, the king, caused it.

Her mother moved her head back towards the mirror so that she could detangle it properly without hassle. Leaning in close, she took in the fresh scent of her clean and stylized hair and sighed lovingly, very much relieved that her daughter smelled nicer than she did before.

"I was thinking that after your hair dries you and your friends could have dinner with us, Seraphina. I'm sure they would be most appreciative." Hat Kid looked at her hands and twiddled them together. She wanted her old outfit back, not whatever this itchy golden dress was. There was barely any purple, and her mother knew purple was her favorite color.

"Where's my top hat?" She asked softly.

"Shh," she stated, putting her palm over her throat, "Don't overwork your vocal cords."

Hat Kid quickly obeyed and looked in the mirror as her mother continued working with her hair.

"As for your top hat... it is safe. It's sitting right over there on your dresser." Out of the corner of her eye, she saw it sitting there, as well as a few of her more useful hats. The sprint hat, the brewing hat, the ice hat, the dweller's mask, and the time stop hat. All equally important for emergency situations regarding her mother.

"Can I wear it at dinner, mother?"

The queen abruptly stopped brushing and looked towards the moons as she laughed. "Of course not! Why would I ever let you wear that dirty old thing to such an important event?"

She scared her daughter without really meaning to. Hat Kid slouched and mumbled, "Fine." to which her mother looked back down in an instant and her smile turned to a frown.

"Back straight, Seraphina." Obeying without another word, her back straightened and a sigh escaped her lips.

"Almost finished, then the two of us can have a little chat regarding your friends... and the war." Her breath caught in her throat and her heart ached for some odd reason, almost as if she knew she was going to be scolded for making friends with "the likes of them" as she remembers her mother saying time and time again.

With the finishing touches being made on her hair, her mother set down the brush and allowed Hat Kid to jump out of the chair. Her mother walked to the large balcony where the double doors stood open to let the night air in. Her long, auburn hair flowed in the sudden gust of wind and she folded her hands together in bliss. Hat Kid wondered whether or not she should find a hair-tie and put her hair in a ponytail again, or simply join her mother in staring out at the kingdom, but Hat Kid is too small to look over the railing, so she would have to look through it. Her mother glanced over her shoulder and flashed the smile again, the same one she made while wanting her daughter to pick up the lily on the ground.

"It's such a lovely night, Seraphina. Come, join your mother and enjoy it with me. We can hold our conversation here." Although hesitant, Hat Kid came to her mother's side and looked up at the two moons again. A few warships scouting the skies for any enemies flew by with intense speed, and yet they made no sound to allow the sleeping residents the ability to spend their nights in bliss.

"I know it was a terrible war, and I understand why you hated it. I was a fool for allowing it to happen, it was such a small colony living up there, they weren't causing anyone harm. They simply wanted to become known as a settlement. Debris is still up there you know, the moon may be broken due to the bombs but there are still structures. People too, frozen in time and floating out there with no one to remember them by." Hat Kid's mother said, her eyes trained on the moon.

Hat Kid squinted and saw a large structure, almost like a tower, still there amongst the wreckage.

"I have to say that Mustache Girl is quite an eccentric little... girl? I'm afraid the mustache throws me off." Queen Ophelia laughed, and Hat Kid tried to smile.

"The Conductor is the one who sent you here, right? On accident or on purpose?"

"Oh, on accident." She used her finger to brush off some dust on the balcony and continued rambling on.

"The Snatcher is quite an interesting soul. He said you make contracts with him, and once he took your soul? My, you must have felt quite empty. Although I can't really figure out a word for DJ Grooves. Oh, I have an idea, think of a word that pops into your head and we'll say it at the same time."

Hat Kid looked up at her mother and opened her mouth. "Obnoxious." They both said in sync, prompting the mother and daughter to share a laugh.

Her mother looked down at her daughter and smiled solemnly and continued talking about the moon colony. "They needed to know that they either live here, or they don't live at all. After all, my war council would not have suggested creating a war if it wasn't for those heathens killing your father in his warship that day."

Hat Kid's eyes suddenly welled with tears. She was so little, and yet she remembered that day so vividly. She and her mother were reading in their library when two soldiers ran inside, their expressions reading that something horrible went wrong. Although Hat Kid was too little to understand, she remembered the guard saying that her own father was murdered, burned to death from his ship blowing from the inside out by the settlers on the moon by accident. She remembered her mother breaking down into tears and slumping onto the floor in a fit of rage, anguish, and mourning. The guards took Seraphina away as her mother cried, and the war council was summoned for battle plans against the moon colony.

"We fought for almost five years, and we finally ended it with that bomb. Over five-hundred people lived on that floating rock, although I'm not quite sure why they didn't colonize to the other moon as well. But, why did you leave me, Seraphina? When I needed you most, when I was devastated in knowing that I slaughtered so many people, you snuck onto your spaceship and left me here... alone. How could you do such a thing to the only family member you have left?"

Hat Kid put the palm of her hand over her throat and backed away. "You know why." She coughed, her vocal cord paralysis was worsening with how much she spoke today.

Her mother turned and clenched her fists to calm herself down. "Right. Your vocal cords never fully healed, did they? You were so young," she looked down at her hands while clenching and unclenching them, "and so determined to tell me why destroying the moon would not bring your father back that I could not control myself. I wrapped my hands around your throat and just kept squeezing."

Hat Kid's mouth twitched. She didn't need to be told how it happened. It was engraved in her memory. To Hat Kid's dismay, her mother kept rambling on.

"You clawed at my arms, begged to me with your last breath to let go of you, and cried."

Hat Kid took a spare hair-tie from the table and promptly put her hair back into a messy ponytail. "You know... I still don't forgive you." Hat Kid's voice continually broke as she spoke that sentence, and she stood her ground.

"I understand if you don't. You left immediately that night without getting the proper care you needed in order to fix it. Come, I think your friends are missing us at the dinner table, or are you not hungry, Seraphina?"

"As a matter of fact," She rubbed her sore throat and tried her best to stand up to her mother, "I am hungry. But, I don't want to be called Seraphina. I go by Hat Kid now, and I expect you to respect that, mother." With her blue eyes narrowed and a swish of her ponytail, she left her mother alone, standing by the balcony with a smile on her face.

The queen laughing through her nose, then tried to calm herself down by fiddling her hands together. "And yet you wear Sehan royal clothing. How pretentious, Hat Kid."


	3. Changing for the Worst

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The group enjoys dinner together and the queen has a secret that could change the course of time and history itself.

"How many times do I have to tell these people that I can't digest food?" The Snatcher grumbled while staring down at the elegant dishes laid out before him. He didn't trust the food in the slightest with how aggravating the chefs were being either.

Finely cooked meat coated in steaming gravy sauce was the main dish, and some sides were steamed broccoli and Hat Kid's favorite; a small helping of macaroni and cheese with a slice of tiramisu for dessert. Mustache Girl was scarfing it down near the end of the table and some food particles managed to find their way onto the pristine tablecloth as her fork slammed against the food and plate to savor the heat of it. The food looked so delicious to her that she couldn't wait for Hat Kid and her mother to show up, so she decided to help herself. She should give her compliments to the chef sooner or later and thank them for such a nice meal, one she hasn't gotten to have ever since the mafia arrived on the island. The Conductor was busy poking at his broccoli even though he was hungry, but due to the events of the day all he wanted to do was patch things up with Hat Kid and make it to bed as soon as possible. As for DJ Grooves, he sat across from the Conductor, not really hungry at all either, but he did take a few bites of macaroni and cheese. He didn't want to try the meat until he found out what animal it came from and he disliked broccoli for obvious reasons.

"You're worried about our little darling, aren't you?" The Moon Penguin asked, giving the owl a small grin. His brows furrowed behind his big, starry sunglasses as he tilted his head to the side. "She'll be alright, you know she will. It's her mother, why would Queen Ophelia hurt her own daughter?"

The Conductor sighed, took a sip of his alcohol in his canteen, and shook his head. "The lassie has been giving me the stink-eye all day. Why should I bother worrying about her when she doesn't even want me near her? If anything, she belongs here. This is her home, isn't it?"

His voice was depressed and guttural as he said this. The Conductor finally took a bite of the broccoli and sighed again, almost like he was tired from simply being in this planet's atmosphere. Although the Conductor never apologized for sending Hat Kid and her friends to her home planet in the first place, DJ Grooves noticed just how miserable the Conductor looked. His head was pressed against his hand and all he could do was stare down at his food, very much unlike his usual self.

"Now listen here, Conductor," DJ Grooves said, grasping the Conductor's hand which held the fork. The Conductor's head immediately came off his hand in a reflex to take action, but he hesitated and opened his mouth. This was a gesture of friendship, almost like an act of reconciliation for their acquaintanceship, even though all they've ever done is bicker.

The Moon Penguin continued. "Her home is with us. You didn't know her spaceship would send us here, and if anything darling, she doesn't hate you. If she wanted to be rid of you, she would of said something right away, isn't that right, you silly peck-neck?"

The Conductor chortled and covered his mouth with his hand before leaning back in his chair. His chest rose and fell continuously as he tried to keep from bursting with laughter at DJ Grooves, then finally looked up and nodded.

"Yeah, I... I suppose so. I'll make sure to apologize to the little lass when I get the chance. Oh, by the way, about that movie you wanted to film-" The dining room doors suddenly opened and Hat Kid's tiny frame stepped through them, which caused her friends to look over at her in relief and surprise.

Her damp hair was dripping water onto the shiny tiled floor and her ponytail had less volume than usual. She missed her hats, she missed her outfits, but most importantly, she just wanted to go home and be rid of this place as soon as possible.

The guards saluted the tiny princess by slamming the bottom of their spears against the floor with great force. The sound of gold and metal hitting the floor resonated off the walls and they saluted with a stern expression on their face as they stared down at the little girl. Their cuirass had an intricate design etched into it, a Time Piece, which was the heart and soul of Sehan until Hat Kid stole all of the Time Pieces so her mother couldn't use them for wrongdoing.

"Princess Seraphina, your presence is requested at the dinner table. It would be best if you join your friends as the Queen will be in shortly to join you." The first guard replied, his eyes seeming to narrow at her startled form.

"Right..." She whispered, staring down at the ground and giving them a nod. As she slowly made her way to the chair closest to the Queen's seat, Snatcher pulled up a chair near him and the Conductor with his usual grin and moved her plates of food to ensure she sits as far away from her mother as possible. All of them were happy to see Hat Kid safe and sound, and once Mustache Girl saw the new outfit, she quickly wiped her face with a napkin and jumped off her chair to gawk at it.

"Wow! Look at you! I don't usually compliment girly stuff like this, but this outfit of yours seems mighty nice. How did the talk with your mom go?" Mustache Girl was feeling the fabric with her hand, but Hat Kid took a step back and laughed.

"You know."

DJ Grooves turned around in his chair and noticed something off about Hat Kid, her signature hat was missing from her head. Granted, the hat would not have gone with the style of the outfit, but without it, she didn't seem like Hat Kid. If anything, she seemed like Princess Seraphina of Sehan, lost and alone with no one to hold her hand through this harsh world.

She was different, and he didn't like it.

"Darling, why don't you come and sit and we can all apologize for how rude we were being on your spaceship?" DJ Grooves requested, giving Mustache Girl a look as if to say "drag her over here so she doesn't change her mind".

Immediately understanding, the hooded girl takes Hat Kid by the wrist, smirks, then pulls her to the seat between Snatcher and the Conductor. The Snatcher was beside the queen now, but since he was a ghost he could withstand a blow to protect Hat Kid if needed, not that he would ever admit to it though. The Conductor averts his gaze back down to his food as Hat Kid picks up her fork and digs into the macaroni and cheese first, then takes a sip of cold, iced tea that has been sitting in a large cup. Sighing happily, she feels her burning throat start to become much colder and she leans back into her chair. Since everyone is so short, except for the Snatcher who is a large ghost, none of their feet reach the floor. Using this to her advantage, Hat Kid swings her sandaled feet under the table as she gorges herself on the much needed meal. Much like Nyakuza Metro, her health bar was probably shaking this very moment.

"Jeez, kid, slow down. You eat like a rabid animal-" Snatcher joked, sneaking her some more mac-and-cheese from his own plate, but one of the guards standing near the door took it upon himself to scold the ghost, "Treat the princess with respect, or I will-"

"You'll do what exactly? Throw me in jail? Put me in chains? Hurt me with that thing you call a spear? Back off, buddy. She's used to this kind of treatment."

The guard immediately silenced himself and realized that fighting with a ghost was probably not the best course of action and promptly apologized. "R-Right. Enjoy your meal." Mustache Girl finished much quicker than the others, her plates licked clean as Hat Kid continued enjoying her own meal.

"What's keeping the queen? All of us are basically finished by now." The Conductor asked himself, trying a bit of cake before setting down his fork. "Um, lassie, can I... tell you something?"

He made sure to look her in the eyes, even though he had none, to get a positive reply out of her.

"Sure, go ahead." She took a bite of broccoli and munched on the vegetable as the Conductor continued his apology.

"Alright, well, I'm just going to go ahead and say it," He gulped and prepared his speech, "I'm sorry for ruining everything. I'm sorry for causing a big fight, ruining your ship, sending you back to your home planet... Ugh, I know I need to be a better owl. I'll fix this, I'll make sure you and everyone else at this table returns back home. And maybe the Moon Penguins and I can make that movie together... with you as the main star? We'll even give you a name other than Random Girl, haha. So, accept my apology?"

Hat Kid had to hand it to the Conductor. He was certainly being civil about the whole big bunch of mistakes he made, but there was something he missed out on.

With a small piece of tiramisu on her fork, the little girl asked, "What about my relic?"

To which the Conductor burst into laughter and nodded as Hat Kid smiled playfully. "Yeah, yeah, lassie. I'll make sure to fix that too. Then you can continue jumping on that thing to your hearts content."

With Hat Kid and the Conductor no longer fighting, Hat Kid shared some of her tiramisu with the the owl even though he had his own piece, but it was nice to share. Almost out of nowhere, the double doors swung open and Queen Ophelia stepped through in a different, more subtle outfit. Instead of her usual long and luxurious blue dress, she had on a simple nightgown made of fine silk with a lace cape to keep her warm.

The guards saluted the same way they did to Hat Kid by slamming their spears to the ground and putting their hands to their head. "Queen Ophelia, your grace." They said in sync, but she merely brushed them off and clapped her hands together as she continued walking towards the main chair.

"Hello everyone! So sorry for being late but I had some business to attend to for a short while, you know, trade agreements, weapon distribution... that kind of nonsense. Oh," She noticed Mustache Girl's empty plates and her daughter's messy face as she continued eating food to keep it from getting cold, then smiled, "I see you've started without me. No matter, we can simply chat while I finish my meal."

As a guard pulled open the chair for her, Queen Ophelia grabbed her fork and placed her napkin on her lap before cutting the meat and taking a bite out of it. Although it was only lukewarm now, it was still hot enough for her to enjoy, so she savored the taste.

"Beg your pardon, Seraphina, but why is your purple friend here in your seat? You and I always sit next to each other when it's time for dinner." As she expected, Hat Kid's mother disobeyed her wishes and continued calling her by her real name instead of the one she suggested.

Hat Kid ignored her mother and looked up at Mustache Girl, who was patting her full belly and looked seemingly exhausted from the events that occurred that day.

"Mother, my friend here seems like she should get to bed." Hat Kid leaned forward to inform her mother of Mustache Girl, and the queen nodded before clapping her hands.

"Would one of you guards kindly take my daughter's friend to her quarters so she can rest? I'm sure all of us can have a lovely breakfast and chat together in the morning once we're rested."

The blonde haired girl was taken by two guards to her room to get much needed sleep and yawned, leaving Hat Kid alone with her friends, and her mother who had just barely arrived.

"Now, Snatcher, was it?" The queen inquired as she took a bite of the broccoli.

She wouldn't touch macaroni and cheese, as she would usually eat something more "dignified" than pasta covered in liquid cheese.

The ghost looked away and shrugged his shoulders with a wheezy laugh. "Yeah? Why?"

"You're completely blocking the view of my daughter. If you would be so kind as to move seats it would be greatly appreciated. After all, you cannot digest food, so why are you even sitting there?" Queen Ophelia had this look in her eyes, like she tried her best to keep her composure while also flat out telling you what she wanted.

The Conductor reassured Hat Kid by nudging her in the shoulder and taking another sip of his alcohol. DJ Grooves spoke up and gave an excuse to keep the queen from getting any angrier than she was already.

"We're so sorry, Queen Ophelia. It's just, he was sitting there before you arrived and didn't know any better, so your daughter had to sit in between them. Once morning comes around we'll make sure to let... Seraphina sit next to you at breakfast." The penguin ate some tiramisu and nodded to her mother.

"Ah, I see. Well, you couldn't have known any better. Forgive me for sounding so rude. I suppose my daughter and I will have to enjoy each other's company after we've had a good nights' rest. Is anyone going to go to bed early?" She continued eating, and DJ Grooves and the Conductor made sure to eat enough so they would have enough energy for a quick escape if needed.

Hat Kid poked Snatcher's ghostly form and yawned tiredly. Noticeable bags were forming under her eyes, but just a few minutes ago she was wide awake. It seems the tasty food put Hat Kid into a food coma, especially since she ate so much of it in very little time.

The ghost rolled his eyes and looked down at her. "What do you want, kid? Don't tell me you're tired already."

The Conductor looked up from his food and almost laughed from the situation Snatcher was in. The terrifying ghost, usually known for taking the souls of poor individuals, had Hat Kid leaning against him with her eyes opening and closing in a sleepy manner. He looked back towards the queen who had a look of jealousy on her face, but all he did was smile awkwardly and get out of the chair. Picking Hat Kid up, he made sure that he carried her in a such a way where she wouldn't wake up. Sleeping soundly, Hat Kid made a noise and pressed herself closer into Snatcher, as if he was a comfortable pillow.

"I'll just... make sure she gets to bed. DJ Grooves, Conductor, we're never, ever speaking of this again." Without another word, Snatcher carries Hat Kid to the double doors and allows the guards to open them for him, and he floats down the extravagant hall of the castle.

"Well, I suppose it's just us three now, isn't it? So, tell me, uh.. do you happen to have a train in your kingdom?" The Conductor asked, trying to make small-talk.

Queen Ophelia, now alone without the company of her daughter, tried to be friendly with the owl. "I take it that's why they call you the Conductor."

DJ Grooves smiles. "Do you happen to know what a DJ is, then?" The queen, not enjoying their company, takes a sip of her drink and sighs. "As a matter of fact, yes."

~~~~~

The queen walked though the barren and empty halls of her castle with a candle in hand, and with the moon to guide her. She passed by her daughter's room and stopped abruptly, feeling almost prompted to make sure her daughter was indeed sleeping in her bed rather than making an escape with that ghost known as the Snatcher and her other friends. Opening the door quietly, she holds the candle inside to light the dark room and is relieved to find her daughter in her evening wear, surround by pillows and covered in blankets.

"Good girl." She whispers, closing the door again.

Continuing down the halls on a secret mission, the queen goes downstairs and immediately heads to the back door towards the landing dock where Hat Kid's ship is currently being repaired. A sudden gust of wind made her hair fly everywhere and she pulled her cape closer to her body to keep herself warm. The building which held her daughter's broken and battered ship came closer and closer into view and she stopped in front of the door.

She blew out the candle and made a fist with her hand, then performed a series of knocks as if it was a secret code for whoever was residing inside. "Yes, yes, just a minute, my lady." An old man replied, scuffling around the room.

Sighing and rubbing her arms with a cold shiver, she waited for the repairman to let her inside and see what she came for. The old man, due to his age, couldn't see very clearly, so as he fumbled to open the door he stepped on some metallic tools which made an unpleasant sound to the ears. Eventually, the door was finally opened and the man looked up at the queen with compassion. He wore a brown newsboy cap and his white hair stuck out from under it. His glasses were large and round, seemingly making his eyes appear as large as a bugs'. He was missing some teeth, but he could still talk just fine. As for his outfit, he wore dirty denim suspenders, a white shirt, a plaid bow tie and large boots.

"How are the repairs going on my daughter's ship?" The queen pushed past him and stayed weary of all the tools and dirty rags covered in oil as she walked towards Hat Kid's large and looming spaceship.

Folding her hands together, she waited for the repairman to make his way to the window/door to be let inside. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a small round object used for cleaning purposes taken apart and investigated. It was a Rumbi, her daughter's Rumbi, disassembled and currently powered down.

"Repairs are going splendidly. It seems that when the ship went into hyperspeed the thrusters nearly burst into flames. I managed to find each of them replacements, and they're all better than the originals." He opened the window/door and helped the queen step inside.

The usually flickering lights were on and shining bright, and the relics belonging to Hat Kid were working just fine. The hamburger relic was repaired and restored back to its former glory, but the queen didn't bother with the relics. She cared about the Time Pieces.

She ignored the repairman and started walking up the ramp leading to the giant vault containing all of the Time Pieces she so desperately needed.

"The vault... have you managed to get it open yet like I requested?" She asked, running her hand against the cold vault door. She quickly brought her hand away after feeling the raw power emanating from the door alone.

"That thing is locked pretty tight I'm afraid. I think I would need to get something very powerful in order to get it open but-"

"Do what I asked. If you need to get a tool capable of splitting atoms apart I'd be more than happy to give you one, I just need this door open. I need those Time Pieces."

The repairman opened his mouth to speak and twiddled his fingers together. "Pardon me for asking but, what do you plan on doing with Princess Seraphina's Time Pieces once you got them?"

Surprised by the question, she glances over her shoulder and looks at the ground. "I plan on fixing countless and horrible mistakes I made a very long time ago. I don't plan on letting my daughter leave Sehan anytime soon, but those friends of hers keep getting in the way. Although incredibly rare, those Time Pieces can change my life for the better."


	4. A Daughter's Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hat Kid wakes up and suddenly has a flashback of the day the moon blew up. However, her companions share breakfast with Queen Ophelia, and Hat Kid shares her adventures.

Hat Kid stirred awake and pulled her covers over her as sunlight filtered through her giant windows. Letting out an aggravated noise from the back of her throat, she hugged the little pillows and toys closer to her after realizing the meeting with her mother wasn't just a horrible nightmare, but indeed reality. Aside from how comfortable her bed is now, she dreaded the idea of waking up and being forced back into that horrible dress without her top hat. She knew that either a nanny, her friends, or her own mother would wake her up and tell her to get ready for the day ahead, but all she wanted to do was lie under the covers and wait for her spaceship to be repaired so everyone could go home.

The kingdom of Sehan had electricity, and even some skyscrapers loomed over the castle off into the distance but it was most likely buildings for trade or manufacturing. Ever since the incident with the moon colony, any and all advancements were given strict access by the scientific/aerodynamics team in the castle, and to purely benefit the kingdom itself as to not cause another uprising. Queen Ophelia's subjects were subjected to a life even before their time, where their kitchens, bathrooms, and electricity were all vintage compared to her own. It was almost like they were forced to be happy rather than demand justice or human rights to obtain better living devices, but they were content with living their lives, so Hat Kid couldn't complain.

Now awake and alone with her thoughts, the little girl considered it was best to simply wake up and start the day anew instead of lying in bed ignoring her problems. It wasn't like she despised her mother, after all, Queen Ophelia took care of her as well as she could despite not having a husband to help raise her. And even still, each positive thought that ran through Hat Kid's mind was immediately replaced by that day where Hat Kid finally gathered up the courage to tell her mother that genocide wasn't the answer, that killing an entire colony wouldn't bring King Xander back. She remembered the enraged look in her mother's eyes as their argument went on and on in the barely lit room where the war council was usually summoned.

~~~~~~

"Seraphina, I've already told you why I had to do it... so can you please just leave me alone in my thoughts?" Her mother begged, one hand at her temple and the other gripping her aching chest.

Another big explosion erupted through the night and Princess Seraphina let out a shriek before falling to the floor and using her arms to pull her body to safety, yet Queen Ophelia did nothing but watch the travesty unfold. The moon was being bombarded with weaponry the likes of Seraphina has never seen, lighting up the dark sky in white light and fire. The large glass dome which provided air to the people of the moon colony was the first to explode on impact, shattering the glass into dust-like particles that could be seen from space.

"W-What did you do?" Seraphina gasped out, tears starting to form in her eyes and roll down her cheeks.

Bits and pieces of the moon were started to break apart in large and small chunks alike, and each and every building was immediately vaporized by the oncoming missile.

"Something I had to do. Those moon colonists were putting up a fight for no good reason. We tried to make them sign a peace treaty, but they wouldn't listen."

Seraphina came to her feet and brushed off her dress before slowly walking over to her mother with a shaky hand. "But, you were the one who started this war. After-"

"I know I did!"

Another explosion ripped through the night sky, and Seraphina could have swore she saw more buildings, almost like apartments, break apart and fly off into space, no doubt with people still inside. The windows seemingly erupted in a brilliant storm of glass shards in the process.

"Seraphina, please," The queen hugged herself and started to quietly sob, "Just leave me alone. A little girl like you shouldn't see such a horrible thing." The moon colony's warships entered their atmosphere, but they were quickly destroyed by Sehan's own warships before they could have even come into full view.

"Mother, this is genocide. Those were your people, our people... and you just slaughtered them all?" Seraphina couldn't believe what she was seeing.

Despite more than enough damage being done to what was left of the buildings, more and more missiles were being launched at the moon to ensure the death of any and all who resided on it. Her mother choked back a sob and wiped her eyes before glancing back over her shoulder, her mouth curling into a frown and sniffling to keep from getting a runny nose.

"Do you think I wanted this to happen?" Her mother demanded, taking her hand off her chest and pointing to the moon.

Seraphina was a pacifist, believing that it was better to negotiate rather than fight aimlessly. The castle shook again and the ear-splitting explosion caused both of them to cover their ears as the last of the missiles continued firing. Once the noise started to die down, the queen made a point to start yelling again.

"Need I remind you that they were the ones who assassinated your father. He was burned alive when they attacked his ship, Seraphina. They have to be punished for what they've done to my husband, you know that." She put emphasis on the word "burned" to hopefully gain a reaction from her daughter.

Looking back up at the moon, she opened her mouth and furrowed her brows together before shaking her head in disbelief. "Killing people won't bring him back. You know it won't!"

In a blind rage, the queen clenched her teeth together and her eye twitched. Seraphina shrunk back and twiddling her hands together at her mother's sudden change in expression. As another explosion ripped through the sky as the moon finally broke in half, making it become a crescent, Seraphina let out a shriek as her own mother started to attack her, lunging for her with angry shrieks and cries. Queen Ophelia's crown fell off her head as she struggled to find a way to punish her daughter.

"M-Mother stop! I'm sorry for saying that, please... just don't- Agh!" Seraphina felt shaking hands wrap around her throat before her mother's weight forced her to the hard floor below. She let out a cry as her head struck the tile, but it was short lived once she saw her mother's enraged face. Tears were streaming down her cheeks and her teeth were clenched as she continued to squeeze harder with every plea Seraphina made for her to let go. Seraphina coughed, kicked her legs, used her hands to claw at her mother's arms, anything for her to let go. "Mother! Let go!" She choked out, feeling her heartbeat starting to quicken. Her head started to hurt and tears sprung to her eyes as she continued to put up a fight, but it was no use.

"Stop! Please! G-Guards!" She spat out, vision and head both starting to blur.

As she continued to thrash, her mother wailed, "Why can't you understand that I did this for your father? He's been avenged! Why can't you be happy for me? Why do I have to do this on my own?!"

Seraphina gave up and let her mother continue to choke her while occasionally making gasping sounds and kicking her feet after realizing her poor attempts at forcing her to let go were futile. More explosions rang out in the distance, but all she could feel was the ground rumbling. Her eyes dulled and she felt her throat started to burn from yelling so much. In a state of falling in and out of consciousness, she heard the door slam open and guards yelling orders to get the deranged queen off of her daughter. A guard pulled the queen up by her armpits and held her back as another guard picked up the little girl and started running towards the infirmary, unaware that this would be the last time he ever see her before she would steal her spaceship and runaway to the stars.

~~~~~~~

Hat Kid blinked away the memory and got out of bed with a stoic expression on her face. There were barely any clouds in the sky today, so she guessed she would have to dress cool to keep from getting hot. She groggily walked over to the dresser to pick out a lavender colored summer dress pushed somewhere far in the back. On impulse, she went to sniff the dress to confirm if it smelled bad from misuse, but instead, she was met with a pleasant floral smell that made her eyes close in bliss and a sigh escaped her mouth. The maids or butlers must have washed her clothes before she went to bed last night, most likely when everyone was having dinner. Now that she thought about it, there wasn't a signal speck of dust on any piece of furniture, and her bed had a different comforter than the one she owned so many years ago.

She felt grateful in knowing the people who cared for her were more than willing to make her room a livable space to enjoy herself if and when she returned, but in a way, Hat Kid felt bad knowing that they would have continued keeping her room tidy and clean despite the fact she had no intentions of returning home anytime soon. She would become queen eventually, that she knew, and Hat Kid made a promise to herself to never abandon her subjects even if Sehan wasn't really her home anymore. Sighing, she saw patrol ships fly through the clouds to protect her kingdom and the people who resided in it, and frowned. "I'm hungry..." She grumbled, then pulled off her nightwear and threw on her summer dress and the sandals from last night. Humming a tune to herself, she walked over to the mirror and took a look at her hair.

With her hair down, she was an exact, younger copy of her mother. Down to the smallest of facial features, they were the same, and it was quite obvious they were mother and daughter. The only discernible difference would be her father's eccentric personality, especially since her "smug dancing" was funny to Bow Kid and the others. Other than that, she was just Princess Seraphina of Sehan, Hat Kid to her companions, and protector of Time Pieces. She was never really one person, but she was more than happy being multiple people to others. Her crown was enshrined on a pillow, no doubt put there before she woke up. A small folded card was beside it too, with the words "Read Me" being hand-written in perfect cursive. Grabbing it and unfolding it, she read, "I hope you put this to good use! ~ Love, mother."

The crown wasn't much to gawk at, and was simply made of fine silver with little diamonds in places to make it shiny. After taking a few seconds to contemplate whether or not wearing the crown was a good idea, she finally gave in and messily put it in her hair just to make her mother happy. It wasn't much, but Hat Kid knew her mother was trying to be a better person.

Getting ready to start the day, she grabbed one of her hairties and put her hair up into the ponytail she knew and loved, then looked over at all of her hats that she tried so hard to find and create, but none of them truly matched her outfit for the day, and she didn't want to get scolded, so she simply smiled, whispered a small sorry to the top hat she loved so much, then opened her bedroom door and was greeted by Mustache Girl sitting outside her bedroom in a red royal dress, most likely given to the blonde haired girl by the queen herself. Her arms were wrapped around her knees and her head was buried into her lap. Her chest rose and fell calmly, so it was no doubt she was asleep and waiting for Hat Kid to wake up so the two of them could walk to breakfast together.

"Hey, wake up, sleepyhead." Hat Kid giggled, and tried to shake Mustache Girl awake.

The blonde haired girl groaned and shoved Hat Kid's hands off her shoulders before trying to go back to sleep in her uncomfortable position against the wall.

"G-Go away... Wake me up when it's morning."

Hat Kid tilted her head to the side and tried to shake her awake again, except with more force this time. "It is morning! Wake up, we got food to eat!"

Mustache Girl widened her eyes as she jolted awake and brought her head up. Her hair in the front had a dent in it from sleeping on her face for so long, but with a few brushes it would go back to normal.

"Oh, Hat Kid, heh, sorry about that. Your mum gave me a new outfit after seeing my old one so tattered and messy! Do you like it? I wanted to show it to you as soon as I got it on!"

She gave a twirl and the hem flowed as she moved, which was something she never usually did, and Hat Kid clapped.

"Ooh, yeah! It's really pretty! But, when exactly did she give it to you?" Hat Kid asked, making sure to inspect it thoroughly. Mustache Girl's dress wasn't made out of just any old fabric, Hat Kid had concluded, it was, in fact, made of the finest red silk Sehan ever had the pleasure of creating.

Mustache Girl laughed and replied, "It was in my room when I woke up in the middle of the night. Your mum is a really kind lady for doing this for me. Hey," the blonde nudged Hat Kid's shoulder with her elbow, "You won't get too jealous if I like the queen, will you? You know, since she's your mum and all."

Hat Kid laughed and looked outside as she replied, "No, no, I don't mind at all. Now come on, I'm starving."

The two girls interlocked arms and giggled before starting to jog down the hall despite their banter in the past. Although not on the best of terms after what Mustache Girl did with her Time Pieces, they had a mutual friendship and would never hesitate to help one another in need.

~~~~~~

Aside from Queen Ophelia making decent conversation about Hat Kid wearing the crown, the breakfast was somewhat quiet and everyone continued to eat what they had on their plates. Three layers of pancakes were stacked on top of each other with special whipped cream, and with a few cut strawberries on top. For a side dish, a small cup of fruit salad consisting of strawberries, bananas, oranges, and apples, all cut into little pieces, with honey milk tea as a beverage. The black tapioca pearls at the bottom were pressed up against the glass. Beside Hat Kid was the Conductor, who seemed to like this new-found drink and felt the need to show it to his grandchildren and the Express Owls once he got back home.

As Hat Kid used her fork to cut a piece of the pancake and shove it into her mouth, she closed her eyes in bliss and took in the taste of the syrup and the whipped cream mixing together.

"This is so good!" Hat Kid took another bite of the pancake, and then another, and another. Syrup had found its way on her mouth as she continued eating, yet she paid it no mind.

Her mother let out happy chuckle and rested her hand on her head as she watched her daughter eat. "Hungry aren't you? Well go on, you have more than enough food to enjoy yourself, sweetheart. I suppose pancakes were always a favorite of yours..."

The Snatcher, who currently didn't have food in front of him after giving the chefs a thorough once over in their kitchen, was busy reading a book he found in the castle library about the history of this kingdom, and unbeknownst to anyone, took a mental note of how many times "Time Piece" was mentioned.

DJ Grooves and the Conductor talked amongst themselves about the new movie they planned on filming and Hat Kid listened in on the story. Trains, drama, murder, flashiness, and character, all rolled into one big movie, with Hat Kid as the star.

"So, what adventures have you been on, Seraphina? I want to hear all of the stories." Her mother requested, eating her pancakes with an interested look in her eyes.

Hat Kid ate some of her fruit salad and thought for a moment. What would she even start off with? The beginning? She stopped chewing and looked down at her plate as if to come up with something. "Uh, well... The mafia broke into my ship and, um..."

She looked to Mustache Girl from assistance and the blonde haired girl looked over at the queen. "Then she and I met up and broke into their HQ! Took down the Mafia Boss all on her own! But then we weren't on good terms after the whole Time Piece ordeal. All I wanted was to rid the world of bad guys~"

"You took down a Mafia boss? Is... Is that what the Mafia Boss became? A jar with a mustache and eyes?"

Mustache Girl proudly held up her fork with a pancake attached to it and exclaimed, "Yeah! Isn't that the ultimate salt in the wound? Hehehehe!"

Queen Ophelia opened her mouth as if to respond to such an "exciting" adventure, but was quickly interrupted by DJ Grooves and the Conductor.

"The lassie has been in our movies too! One was a murder mystery called Murder on the Owl Express, and my other movie was Train Rush. Haha! You should have seen the look on her face when she was running for dear life with that bomb being attached to the back of me train!"

"That's right, Conductor-darling! Oh, but don't worry, my movies were a bit more subtle for the little darling such as herself what with being a diva and a parade leader! Oh, you should seen how remarkable she was! Pure grace and elegance in such a tiny body!"

Snatcher rose his hand away from the book and bragged, "I took her soul and made her my personal servant. And then she fought me and forced me to let her stay in my forest, and now we're contractually bound to be best friends, much to my dismay."

The queen tried to come up with what to say to hearing about her daughter going on so many adventures, all at the expense of her own life. "So, wait... So um... He took your soul?"

Mustache Girl gasped and almost started jumping on her chair. "But about about Alpine Skyline? Oh, oh! And The Arctic Cruise? Hahaha, is that walrus guy still mad that you sunk his ship? Please tell me he's still mad."

Hat Kid tried to reply, but was suddenly cut off by the Conductor who was vertically spinning his fork with his hand on his cheek. "Then you joined the Nyakuza and got chased by the Empress for stealing your Time Pieces back from her." He seemed almost bored, like he wanted something better to do rather than sit and chat all day.

The Snatcher looked up from his book and narrowed his eyes. "You're tellin' me that the brat was in a... cat gang? Like what? Cats committing crimes?"

Hat Kid couldn't tell whether or not Snatcher was asking her a question, so she simply ignored it. Queen Ophelia sighed and looked down at the tablecloth, almost as if she was fed up with her daughter's friends interrupting every single conversation she tried to make. Hat Kid looked over at her mother, eyebrows furrowed and her lips mouth opening slightly.

"Hehe, yeah. Snatcher took my soul but I was contractually bound to do it. It's okay though," Hat Kid looked over at Snatcher and put on the best smug face she could make, "He and I are BFF's now and I can visit whenever I want!"

"You don't have to brag you little-" Before the Snatcher could finish his sentence and get back to reading, Mustache Girl jumped off the chair and was preparing to leave before Queen Ophelia stopped her. The queen stood up from her chair and used her napkin to brush off any crumbs that managed to fall onto her dress.

She had a smile on her face, yet anyone could tell she was a bit aggravated with how rudely everyone was behaving. "Mustache Girl, you're leaving so soon? Are you sure you've had enough food?"

Hat Kid hopped off the chair and started to follow Mustache Girl, but her mother put a hand on her daughter's shoulder so that she would stay as close as possible. Hat Kid could feel her mother's long, polished, and sharp nails dig into her shoulder if she even dared to run off with her friend, and Mustache Girl noticed it almost immediately.

The blonde turned and scratched her cheek with her index finger, and with how short she was, she had to crane her neck in order to look up at Hat Kid's mother. "Yeah, you don't mind do ya? I wanted to go into town and check out some junk that looked interesting."

The queen's expression quickly changed from confusion to excitement, then folded her hands together and nodded. "Well, that seems like a splendid idea! Are you sure you want to go alone?"

Sighing under her breath, Hat Kid rubbed her sore shoulder and noticed Snatcher staring at them out of the corner of her eye.

Mustache Girl turned on her heels and brushed off the queen by waving her hand nonchalantly and making a "Yeah, yeah, yeah" noise, except it was more like a babble rather than actual words. She opened the large doors on her own and walked down the hallway by herself, obviously more confident in finding her way around than most people.

Hat Kid's mother turned and tilted her head to the side, her long hair falling as she moved. "Well, I suppose if you don't have anything better to do, you and I can enjoy each other's company. This is your first official day of being home, and you're even wearing the crown I gave you."

Queen Ophelia put her hand on her knee as she bent down so that she was eye-level with her daughter. Caressing Hat Kid's hair, she readjusted the crown atop Hat Kid's head and laughed. "What do you say? Want to spend a whole day with your mother?"

Hat Kid looked over at her friends for guidance, and each and every one of them had an almost standoffish aura about them. "Ah ah ah," Queen Ophelia scolded, drawing her daughter's attention back to her. The queen forced Hat Kid's head back around so that she could stare her daughter in the eye. "Seraphina, I'm not the bad guy here. This is your decision. You can either stay here with your friends and I tend to my kingdom, or you and I can go on an outing together. Your choice."

Gulping, she almost feels like she would be disappointing her mother if she doesn't choose to spend the day with her. Her friends were busy, and Hat Kid knew she had nothing better to do. With a spring in her step, she replies, "Sure... as long as you call me Hat Kid like I asked you to."

Although taken aback by her daughter's request, Queen Ophelia takes her daughter's hand and looks over at her friends as if she was bragging without saying a word. "Don't worry, Hat Kid. I'll try to remember and heed to your commands. We're going to have... such a good time together today."

Neither the Conductor, DJ Grooves, or the Snatcher knew who Queen Ophelia was looking at when she replied to her daughter's request, but if anything, Snatcher felt like she was glaring at him more than the two birds. His eyes narrowed back, almost like he was testing to see if he and the queen had any unspoken bad blood.

His suspicions were answered when she quickly mouthed a, "She's mine." as quietly as possible to the ghost, and Hat Kid looked up at her mother in confusion. Queen Ophelia shielded her daughter from her three friends, and quickly led her through the large dining room doors without another word, and with a very obvious fake smile on her face.

Any and all likability the queen had managed to gain for herself vanished in that one simple moment, and Snatcher felt something he never expected; jealousy.


	5. Like It or Not

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hat Kid and her mother spend the day together, meanwhile Snatcher reads more into the history of Time Pieces and why the queen needs them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for making this story so popular !!

It was an odd experience finally being home again and wearing Sehan royal clothing, but her mother made sure to give Hat Kid time to adjust to being a princess again, much to the little girl's surprise. Regardless of being heavily cautious, Hat Kid allowed her mother to hold her hand as they walked through the castle gardens and taking in the lovely topiary's and fields of flowers. There wasn't much of a change to the gardens, aside from a new greenhouse being built far off into the corner containing butterflies and plants unsuitable for this climate. A winding cobblestone path lay from the steps leading outside the castle and into the gardens themselves. A large marble fountain was housed in the center of it, and with it, some type of angelic-being held a jug and poured the water into the pool below, where goldfish and koi were swimming happily. Hat Kid felt the need to steer clear of the statue, especially after the statues in the Subcon Forest came to life and chased her around.

Hat Kid's mother looked down at her daughter and smiled, almost relishing the fact Seraphina was awestruck by the beauty of her home and the changes that had been made to it.

"Judging by your expression, I can tell that you enjoy the garden a lot now that we've made a few adjustments to it. When you left, I would come here to rehabilitate myself and reflect on the choices I've made in the past. This garden is very peaceful," Queen Ophelia explained, watching a bird flutter onto a nearby tree and settle into its nest, "I had always hoped that you would get to see me as a different person. But, I was actually thinking that you and I visit town today, Sera- Ahem, Hat Kid."

"Town? But don't we need guards to protect ourselves?" Once again, as if she was brushing Hat Kid off and ignoring her immediately, Queen Ophelia let out a laugh and started walking towards the back gate that led to a secret path out of the castle, although it looked unused for quite some time since vines and overgrowth had rusted the metal gate

Letting out a huff, Queen Ophelia started to tear off plants that had managed to grow onto the gate. "As long as you don't tattle on me, I think we'll be able to sneak out of this dingy old castle and enjoy ourselves. I want to spend a day with you where you're not a princess and I'm not a queen. We're just a mother and daughter, enjoying a beautiful day. Now come on, we mustn't burn daylight."

Helping her mother force the gate open, Hat Kid used all the strength she had to rip the vines and plants off of it in order to escape from the castle without anyone seeing them.

"What will we do once we're in town?" She asked her mother, before having her hand grabbed again and guided through the gate and onto the beaten path.

Queen Ophelia looked around for any guards that managed to see them leave, but once the coast was clear the two of them started running through the Wisteria tree forest, their clothes slowly becoming tattered and dirty from the floor being covered in leaves and other types of matter. The path through the woods was barely even considered a path anymore, with grass and bushes covering the usually white cobblestone leading from the forest to town.

The two of them slowed down to a walk as they got further and further away from the castle gardens, and Queen Ophelia let out a breathless sigh while letting go of Hat Kid's hand. She seemed to have ignored her daughter's question, most likely making their outing a surprise rather than tell her the plans she made once they managed to find their way there. The Wisteria trees didn't seem to be one color, in fact there were rows of them, planted individually and given their own special color. Purple, white, blue, and pink trees were placed in specific areas, all of them looming over the queen and her daughter in a magnificent display.

With her chest rising and falling quickly, the queen looked around at all the trees as they continued walking together on the broken path.

"You know, Hat Kid, I met your father in these woods many years ago. He was not royalty like I was, but when we locked eyes, we knew that we were meant for one another."

Hat Kid tried to keep up the pace as her mother told the story, but she had no idea what to say. Granted, she knew her father was a commoner before he married into royal blood, but she didn't know how they met. It was an odd experience remembering him, his appearance seemingly distant now, like he was never in her life in the first place. The only thing she could really remember was the fact he had blonde hair and blue eyes. Mustache Girl would probably enjoy hearing this story, but to Hat Kid, it only made her uncomfortable talking about her father.

"Mother, I really don't think we should-" Before she could finish her sentence, Queen Ophelia abruptly stopped and held her arm out to make her quit walking.

She bumped into her mother's leg and held her dress in fear, mostly because if her mother was scared, then whatever is moving through the trees is more dangerous than her. Despite the forest being perfectly safe, Hat Kid's mother heard something moving through the trees and felt the need to take action. A sudden gust of wind erupted through the calm, and Hat Kid's blue eyes widened as her mother started walking towards the source of the noise with her other hand stretched out towards the trees, her hair and feet rising in the air as she channeled what seemed to be the power of a Time Piece.

"Mother? What are you-" Her mother's hand caressed her brown hair and the queen stopped time in almost an instant, and the world seemed to bend around her.

Her hair stopped flowing by itself, and her dress was back to normal, but once time had stopped, the queen immediately went to inspect who was watching them through the trees, leaving her daughter alone on the path. She twiddled her hands together and looked around the the lifeless trees, the butterflies and birds frozen in midair. With a worried look in her eyes, she stepped off the cobblestone path and onto the forest floor, only to discover that the ground didn't create an indent of her shoe. It was as if there was glass keeping the ground from being touched, but with how long she the Time Pieces, Hat Kid knew this was only a side effect on the environment when there was a Time Rift or when the world froze around people.

Following her mother deeper into the forest, she takes note of the fact Queen Ophelia is capable of channeling the power of Time Pieces, and wonders if her mother had done experiments with the last remaining Time Pieces. Something might have gone wrong while she was away, after all, a Time Piece was a physical object, and not much is known about them besides the fact they hold the power to change time either for the better or for the worse. If a human is capable of controlling it like her mother can, then Hat Kid absolutely needs to keep her vault shut and locked in case someone who to try and open it. This behavior wasn't normal, and her mother shouldn't be able to do this with Time Pieces.

Nearing the figure who was frozen in time, Hat Kid gasps and puts her hand to her chest. It was Mustache Girl, lost and alone in the forest, her face full of worry and fear. It seems she was just as afraid of Hat Kid and the queen without knowing who they were. Queen Ophelia stood in front of the frozen little girl, who had her hands on a tree and peering around the trunk. Her hands were clenched and her expression was full of regret knowing she was about to use her power on a little girl.

"Seraphina, this was... I'm sorry." As the queen took a step back, she twiddled her fingers together and whimpered.

Hat Kid walked towards Mustache Girl and inspected her form with curiosity, almost impressed that her mother was capable of such a feat. "Unfreeze time. Now."

Queen Ophelia obeyed her daughter's command and brought Sehan back to life. Trees swayed in the wind, and birds started to chirp again. As for Mustache Girl, she almost shrieked at seeing Hat Kid and Queen Ophelia teleporting next to her despite thinking she was alone.

"What? H-How did... But you... What?" Mustache Girl tried to ask, but Hat Kid's mother shushed the blonde by squatting down to her height and giving her a tight hug and whispering in her ear that she was alright.

Mustache Girl was taken aback by the queen's sudden kindness, and she looked over at Hat Kid with her orange eyes narrowed in confusion.

"Hey, no need to get all sappy on me. I'm fine." Mustache Girl laughed, pushing the queen away and wiping her dress off.

The queen stood up and straightened her back before using her right hand to wipe away a forming tear in her eyes. "I-I know, it's just... What are you doing out here by yourself? You could get lost."

The blonde swayed back and forth using her feet and smirked. "I actually did get lost, but now that you two are here, I may as well find my way out and let you two have fun together."

Hat Kid huffed and crossed her arms at the attention Mustache Girl was getting. It was almost like she planned this in order to get closer with Queen Ophelia, although she wasn't entirely sure if it was for her own selfish gain, or if she wanted a parental figure in her life. Regardless, once her mother and Mustache Girl started walking towards the beaten path, Hat Kid followed close behind to make sure she didn't get lost as well.

"So, Mustache Girl, I take it you like the outfit I gave you?" Queen Ophelia inquired, before taking her daughter's hand.

She could still feel the pulsating energy coming from her mother, almost like there was a Time Piece giving her power at this very moment. After all, she rose into the air, so there was no telling how strong she was going to make her attack had it not been for Mustache Girl being lost instead of an assassin or a villager who had just managed to catch them at a bad moment. But the tighter she grasped her mother's hand, the more painful it became. It wasn't electric or hot, but like having something digging into your skin and creating pulses at random. It was practically amazing that Queen Ophelia could hide the pain she was in at the moment. If anything, this seemed like the beam Mustache Girl had used during the Finale with how intense it became.

The two of them continued talking and Hat Kid took in the scenery, her neck craning to get a good look at all the Wisteria trees in full, perfect bloom. She was about to trip on an upraised cobblestone piece, but her mother lifted her up as if expecting it to happen. The path ended as the forest stopped on a nearby road towards the town, and Mustache Girl starts leaving once again with a skip in her step.

She's always been a loner, and sometimes it was a good thing knowing how confident she was when it came to safety, so Queen Ophelia waved Mustache Girl goodbye and and yelled, "Stay safe and have fun, little one!"

The two of them brushed off their dirty clothes and walked down the road towards medieval-esque town. The residents would wave and wish the mother and daughter to have a splendid day, some would bow in respect, others would give Hat Kid some sweets. She accepted them all, silently hoping her friends were alright back at the castle. A bakery was cooking pastries and had their window open, and Hat Kid sniffed the air in delight as she and her mother ran around town and entertaining people as they passed by.

It wasn't a funny feeling holding her mother's hand or joking with her again, despite being gone for so long. Queen Ophelia was trying to be a mother and a queen, which in itself was a lot of hard work for one woman. But despite the hardships, she managed with or without a husband; although only barely.

As Hat Kid walked into the town-square, she noticed there were some residents who were celebrating the safe return of both Princess Seraphina, and the Time Pieces which were stolen away by holding a small festival. Guards adorning their golden armor assisted the young and the elderly to prepare decorations and food, much like the streamers on Alpine Skyline which she used to get around. The festival goers cheered at the sudden appearance of the royals, and Hat Kid squeezed her mother's hand tighter, only to be hoisted up onto her mother's shoulders and laugh as music started to play and people started to dance.

"Welcome home, Princess Seraphina!" The people rejoiced, throwing flowers and confetti about the cobblestone floor.

The queen, with her daughter on her shoulders, spun around and danced with her subjects in such a way that festivals were one of he activities she loved the most. Much to her surprise, Hat Kid didn't mind being called Princess Seraphina at all. In fact, she felt the need to celebrate along with them by throwing her hands in the air and letting out a cheer, and that was exactly what she did.

~~~~~~~

The Snatcher continued studying as many books as he could find about the Time Pieces, and he knew quite enough that Time Pieces can affect a person's mindset entirely by making them stronger. The library was filled with enough books to make even him jealous, but he had more important matters to attend to. From the second he managed to find that one single copy early in the morning, he's been using his ghostly advantages to reach high areas of a bookshelf to find what he was looking for. Surprisingly, each book was different and discussed different things that can be done with Time Pieces. There was one that described how and why Time Pieces came into existence and why they were so important, and that if there were none left in the known universe, time itself would end abruptly, which is something Snatcher didn't want to think about. The pages were yellowing with age, almost to the point where they were brown, and yet the words lay intact.

There was another book that described the magic properties of the hourglasses and how they manage to store such an important aspect of the universe inside them, but if they were broken the hourglass would automatically reverse time and fix itself. Another book instructed someone on how to use it on themselves or on the universe, and one another described why there were Time Rifts. With each and every book, Snatcher processed the information and made sure to make mental notes, especially since the only known Time Pieces belonged to Hat Kid, which were tucked safely away inside her vault back on the ship. Until it gets fixed, his minions are without a master, which most likely means they'll all be trashing his forest this very moment with him being gone.

As he continued looking for more books, he tried to figure out why there were so many books about the Time Pieces, rather than putting summarized information into one huge book. Instead, the books he's been finding are all short volumes and goes into great detail about each individual part of a Time Piece. It seemed to be a bit of a stretch to go to such great lengths and teach someone about time being preserved in a glowing hourglass.

Nevertheless, he grabbed the most interesting book he could find, threw himself onto a nearby chair, and inspected the title.

"Magical Properties and Uses of a Time Piece. Author: Unknown." He read, tilting his head to the side in confusion.

"Is this book so old that the original author didn't even put their name?" He asked himself before turning the page.

There was an illustration of a humanoid figure harnessing the power of a Time Piece in a strange manner that even he became uncomfortable. The humanoid had first, rose the Time Piece above their head, then in the second step, smash the Time Piece onto the ground. The third illustration was a bit stranger, where the humanoid catching the forming Time Rift into their hands before quickly swallowing it, then becoming almost ethereal once they harnessed its power.

"What the...?" Snatcher managed to get out before continuing to read.

"The illustration before you is purely to harness the power of a Time Piece. Breaking the hourglass and stealing the glowing energy from inside of it causes the Time Piece to forever be gone, where you can no longer get the Time Piece back to its original shape. However, an individual is now capable of magic, such as stopping time itself, teleporting, using a beam of energy to attack if needed, as well as create a protecting barrier around yourself if necessary. This does not harm the individual unless properly taken care of and used to protect and serve others." He reads, remembering how Mustache Girl used the Time Piece like that during the final battle.

Turning the page, he notices another illustration, only one this time, but there was something off about the page. It was purposely ripped out of the old book, for reasons he didn't know, and seemed to have been shoved into a pocket at one point. There was the humanoid figure again, breaking Time Pieces to change the past or future, ultimately affecting the present in the process.

The book read, "If fallen into the wrong hands, Time Pieces can and will be used for someone's own selfish gain. This means that someone can crumble cities, make puppets out of entire civilizations, and ultimately, bring someone back from the dead. Once this occurs and if a Time Piece is broken and not rewound to be put back together, the past or the future can be changed and will not go back to normal. Time Pieces are... highly dangerous and are to be kept inside of a special vault that keeps them safe and away from the wrong hands."

Snatcher looked up to the crescent moon and watched the debris encircling what was left of the floating rock.

"How long are we going to stay here?" The ghost asked himself, then closes the book, then goes to pick up another one.

~~~~~~

"Come on, Seraphina! We can rest away from the festival here!" Queen Ophelia called to her daughter.

Her shoes were off and her feet dug into the incredibly soft grass from a park near the town-square. Hat Kid ran after her, sandals off and hair at her shoulders as she followed her mother into the clearing. Lashing out her arms, Hat Kid's mother grabbed her hands and started spinning, her back bent and her her mouth curled into a smile.

Giggling, Hat Kid abruptly threw herself into her mother's arms, and Queen Ophelia hugged back as tightly as she could. Hat Kid took in her mother's scent, it was oddly enough, sweet cinnamon pumpkin, which was almost a favorite. 

Falling into the soft grass, the mother and daughter continued chuckling together while lying right beside each other and holding hands. The queen's crown falls off her head into the grass as she lands, yet Hat Kid's crown manages to stay in her hair somehow, albeit becoming loose. Although breathless due to the heat and how fast they were spinning, Hat Kid turned on her side and watched her mother laugh and run a hand through her messy hair.

The queen looked over at her daughter as well before ending her laughing fit, then turns on her side and lets out a sigh.

"So, how did you like your first day back home?" Her mother asked before staring up at the sky.

Hat Kid copied her mother and stared up at the clouds as well, her hand on her stomach from how much food and drinks she ingested. "It was fun! They were really kind to me-" She suddenly started having a coughing fit, most likely from all the cheering she had done that day.

Her mother frowned and allowed her to continue, but there was something on her mind that she wanted to say from the moment Hat Kid had stepped foot on Sehan to begin with.

"You know, Seraphina, you could stay here. You have a kingdom that loves you... A mother who cares for you and loves you. The thought of you leaving me makes my heart ache to the point that I physically recoil from the pain." Her mother suddenly suggested, causing Hat Kid to stop coughing almost immediately to come up with what to say.

"Really? But what about my friends? How will they get back home?" Hat Kid inquired after picking some grass out of the ground.

Biting her lip, the queen continued, "Well, I'm not entirely sure. Maybe they should just live with you. But listen to me, your place is not in a spaceship constantly wondering when you'll need to fight something or someone again. Why is it so hard for you to stay here?" The queen held herself up using her arm as she stared down at her daughter. A sudden gust of wind made her hair flow in the air and her blue eyes were narrowed in a silent plea.

"I love Sehan, really, but... I'm sorry. I left this place for a reason, and it was nice to visit you and everyone else, mother, but my place is in the stars. I'm not just Princess Seraphina, I'm Hat Kid!" She tried to say, but her mother suddenly stopped holding her hand and furrowed her eyebrows together.

Much to Hat Kid's surprise, her mother did not scream or cry. Instead, the queen simply smiled and with a snap of her fingers, they were taken back to the past. Hat Kid jumped to her feet as she witnessed bombs and missiles being shot at the moon colony, her blue eyes widened and shock and fear over how powerful her mother really was. But something seemed off about it, the townspeople weren't running away or cowering in fear. They were frozen in time, still enjoying the festival that was held for Hat Kid's safe return. Not only that, but it was broad daylight. The moon colony was destroyed at night, which meant only one thing. This was a memory; a shared memory.

As the queen stood to her feet, her hands clenched in anger and an alarmingly calm smile was adorning her face. Taking a step towards her daughter, she disregarded the missiles making the ground shake and yelled, "Did you really think you had a choice in the matter, Seraphina? You're going to stay here whether you like it... or not."


	6. Fighting For What's Right

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Discovering that Queen Ophelia has no intentions of letting Hat Kid or her friends leave Sehan, the little hatted girl will have no other choice than to fight her overpowered mother, all while memories of the past plague her mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next three chapters will include three separate endings with the Bad Ending first, followed by the Neutral Ending, then lastly the Good Ending. Not exactly a spoiler, but: Hat Kid and her friends will escape no matter what ending.

Hat Kid gasped for air as she ran down the cobblestone streets to get away from her mother, and the soles of her shoe-less feet were aching from how long she's been running and dodging attacks. A sudden explosion of purple light appeared from her mother's hands as she fired another beam, but Hat Kid quickly did a double jump in the air to dodge it before hitting the ground again with a painful look in her eyes. Biting her lip, she realized she was completely helpless in this situation. In a cruel way, she knew her mother would betray her like this.

Why would Queen Ophelia let her daughter leave now that she has finally got her back? Now that the Time Pieces are back? Hat Kid's friends were just in the way. That was why she wanted to spend the day with her, to somehow convince her daughter to stay, regardless if she wanted to or not. Much like The Empress, Hat Kid was afraid of losing someone's trust, which was why she didn't want to try a homing attack. If she attacked her mother, it would only make things worse, so for now she kept her distance and focused purely on avoiding her mother's attacks.

Until she got to the castle to warn her friends about what was going on, she had no hats, no umbrella, no badges, not even a proper outfit. Right now, she was just Seraphina, running for her life as her mother forced her to remember a day that she would have much rather forgotten. The explosions still rang out in the frozen kingdom with bits and pieces of the moon being broken off and scattering to-and-fro way above the planet, and yet Hat Kid felt the need to glance over her shoulder to make sure no debris was going to fall into Sehan's atmosphere. From behind her, she could still see her mother using all the strength she had to channel the power of a Time Piece and send another purple beam of light.

Her brown hair was rising on its own, and remarkably, her feet weren't touching the ground. There was what seemed to be an aura as well, a sinister, overpowered aura surrounding her entire body and engulfing her in an unbreakable barrier, much like the one Mustache Girl used during the final fight. It was almost ominous how she was capable of harnessing such awful energy, and how much pain she must be in at the moment with how her face contorted whenever she used to charged beam of energy. The explosions stopped firing now, and the moon was a crescent shape again.

Finding the road which led to the gardens, Hat Kid found her bearings and tried her best to run as fast as she could back into the castle, even though her legs ached and her lungs burned with every breath of air.

"Running back to your little friends will only make things worse for you!" Her mother exclaimed, before using the last of her energy to teleport to her daughter.

Although her power was strong, Queen Ophelia only ever used teleportation as a last resort since it drained her to the point of exhaustion and discomfort.

The queen grabbed her daughter and picked her up by the waist while Hat Kid thrashed and let out a shriek. She only hoped someone, anyone, regardless of being frozen or not, would hear her cries and come to her rescue.

With a huff, the queen hoisted Hat Kid over her shoulder and tried her best to walk after using so much of her strength, as well as be hit on the back over and over by her young daughter. "If I have to keep you locked up in your room, I won't hesitate to do so! As long as I am the queen, the possibility of you leaving Sehan will never, ever come into your grasp!"

"Let me go! I don't care about you or this stupid planet! My friends and I are going home-"

As if out of nowhere, Hat Kid's ship burst out of the roof of the reparations building with a loud metallic thud, startling both women to the point of stopping their argument with surprised looks in their eyes. Without realizing it, the world had gone back to normal and everyone was free to move as they pleased without being frozen in place. Bits and pieces of metal belonging to the building scattered about and the ship slowly rose into the air. The Wisteria trees were blown about by the sudden gust of the spaceship getting ready for takeoff, and Hat Kid was dropped to the floor.

Jumping midair to keep from landing with a hard thud, she hopped and turned back towards her mother who was staring up at the ship with an excited look in her eyes after realizing that the repairman had managed to get the ship up and running.

"I won't lie, Seraphina. I could care less if you left without another word with your pathetic excuses for friends. But those Time Pieces, they are mine, and they aren't going anywhere."

Dashing off into the forest and towards the spaceship, Hat Kid realized that her mother would have access to the vault containing all of the Time Pieces she had kept safely locked away. She blinked and clenched her fists together, preparing herself for the fight ahead, but without meaning to, she broke down into a sob.

Feeling her legs give out from under her, she slumped to the ground and cried into her hands, realizing that she had been tricked into thinking Sehan was still her home after all these years. Her mother couldn't be trusted, but without her ship she couldn't get home. There was no telling what she would do with all of the Time Pieces locked away in her ship, but Hat Kid was more worried about her friends. She wanted to do something other than cry like a coward after all the adventures she's been on, but she was only a child. At this very moment, she was no longer Hat Kid nor Princess Seraphina. She was only a scared little girl with a crown atop her head and tears rolling down her cheeks. She missed her father, she wanted him back. Although he was gone, she knew he would have hated to see her like this.

~~~~~~~

"Now hold on, Seraphina, when flying a spaceship, you must do it properly." King Xander chuckled out before helping his young daughter with the ship's controls.

A little brown haired and blue eyed girl was sitting on his lap in the captain's chair, with a big smile on her face and a mischievous look in her eye. For her fourth birthday, she was gifted an entire spaceship by her father, and was promised to be taught a flying lesson where it was just the two of them together, enjoying each other's company.

Queen Ophelia had other matters to attend to at the moment, so the father-daughter duo took it upon themselves to learn how to fly a ship. The king was stoic and handsome with shoulder length curly blonde hair. His blue eyes were usually narrowed to keep composure around his subjects, but never his wife and daughter. Around them, he was seemingly a ray of sunshine. He would give his wife a peck on the cheek at breakfast, pick up his daughter and let her ride on his shoulders as they strolled through the castle gardens, and helped those in need whenever possible. His voice was low and gravelly, and somehow, had the voice of an angel rolled into one.

Seraphina twiddled her fingers together as her father readjusted the settings so that the ship wouldn't turn upside down from how much the little girl was mishandling the control panel. She watched as he diligently fixed every single flashing light and turned off the alerts that were creating an unbearable noise to the ears, taking note of each and every process so she could get to flying on her own as soon as possible without the help of her parents.

The two of them were out of Sehan's atmosphere, surrounded by nothing but the black void of space and glowing, white stars so far off into the distance that they seemed like nothing more than glowing specks of dust. The two large moons were beside one another as well, and slowly but surely there was a giant glass dome being built on the lunar surface in order to house settlers inside of it with oxygen while a small village was coming to life.

After making the last of the reparations on the control panel, King Xander leaned back in the chair and sighed while ruffling Seraphina's hair.

"There we go. All fixed. You know, if you're ever going to fly this spaceship, you first have to learn how to pilot it. Now go on, try again."

Listening to her father's instructions, Seraphina attempted to press the buttons in corresponding order, as well as flip any switches that needed to be on or off for the ship to work properly. Jumping to life, the spaceship suddenly used its thrusters to move forwards through space before abruptly stopping once Seraphina scrambled to find the brake to keep the ship from going into hyperspeed.

"This is too hard, father. I can't fly the ship properly..." She grumbled, folding her hands into her lap.

Letting out a hearty chuckle, her father pat her on the shoulder after using his expertise to fly the ship correctly. "It's not so hard once you figure it out. You're still a child, you have to get used to flying."

As if memorized in his mind, he pressed buttons and looked down at his daughter before motioning with his head towards the joystick located on the chair, as if he wanted her to push it down to start up the ship.

"Want to do the honors?" He asked.

Looking over at it, Seraphina grinned and reached over, grabbed it, then used all of her force to start up her ship again so that the two of them could continue their flying lesson. Throwing the two of them back against the chair, the ship gracefully flew through space in a dazzling display in a way that Seraphina would not only enjoy the view, but also so she won't get motion sickness from how fast and sporadic the movements were as the ship drifted around the planet of Sehan. Hopping out of the chair and pressing her hands against the glass, Hat Kid stared out at the planet with wide and interested eyes, before turning back towards her father and clapping.

"Do you think mama knows we're looking down on her right now? Can she see us in this spaceship?" She asked excitedly, making King Xander tilt his head in thought.

"It's quite possible, my little lily. She loves us very much, so it's no doubt she's worried about you learning how to fly this hunk of metal." Her father replied, before motioning with his hand for her to come sit back down to get ready to land.

"Do you think I'll be able to fly as well as you do someday?"

As she sits on his lap, he hugs her close and responds, "You? Well, I think you'll be amazing at it. You always had a knack for doing the right thing. Just, when you get older, don't take this spaceship out on a joyride with friends or else you'll be in big trouble."

Sharing another laugh, the father and daughter continued to steer the ship through space.

~~~~~~

"... -Kid! Hat Kid! C'mon, we gotta find the others! Your mum managed to open the vault and now everything is going haywire. Get up!" Mustache Girl pleaded, shoving Hat Kid in the arm in order for her to awaken.

Hat Kid blinked open her eyes and realized she cried herself to sleep, even though the top priority right now is stopping her mother from using the Time Pieces.

She wiped the dried up tears from her cheeks and looked at Mustache Girl with a despondent look in her eyes, almost like she wanted to give up.

"Whoa, hey," The mustached girl said, consoling Hat Kid as she stood, "Have you been crying?"

Almost immediately, a very worried yell erupted through the calm and Snatcher appeared through the floor, nearly scaring Mustache Girl half to death.

"Kid! There you are! Listen, the Conductor and DJ Grooves are still in the castle. As much as I hate to admit it, we need your help in stopping your mother and going home. Can you do that for us?" Snatcher almost pleaded, and grabbing her by the shoulders.

She looked to the ground and shrugged, almost like she had entirely given up hope. Her mother had the Time Pieces now, and there was no doubt that the Conductor and DJ Grooves were fighting her together right at this very moment. "Why bother? Sehan already took everything from me. Why would I fight back?"

Mustache Girl's orange eyes widened at her statement. Even Snatcher, the usually happy-go-lucky maniac of a ghost seemed taken aback by what Hat Kid said. But Mustache Girl wouldn't give up, which was why she clenched her fists together and stomped her foot before snatching the crown off of her head and shaking it. 

"This... thing doesn't mean anything to you! I didn't become friends with Princess Seraphina, Snatcher didn't become friends with Seraphina, nor the Conductor, or DJ Grooves, or anyone else you met on your adventures! You are Hat Kid! You beat up bad guys, go back in time, and then beat them up again! You became a movie star, you traveled Alpine Skyline and saved the goats from poisonous flowers! You fought a ghost, for crying out loud!" She pointed her finger at Snatcher as she continued her speech, prompting a small, proud smile from Hat Kid.

Snatcher tried to speak up as well, but he wasn't very good at giving compliments. "You helped get rid of that haunted toilet, sunk a ship, and uh... joined a gang! In my opinion, those adventures are what makes you special, kid! You don't need to be a princess to show people how important you are! Now come on, we got a fight to win."

Tears started to form in her eyes yet again, only this time, they were tears of joy.

Realizing she could be who she wanted to be without anyone telling her otherwise, Hat Kid nodded and allowed Mustache Girl to throw the crown as far as possible into the Wisteria trees where no one would be able to find it.

"Come on! We gotta get our stuff back!" Mustache Girl exclaimed, before starting to run back towards the castle.

Hat Kid was about to run after her, but once she did her feet started to hurt from all the running she did earlier to get away from her mother. Snatcher noticed this, sighed, then offered her his arms. "Need a lift?"

She gracefully accepted it, then climbed into his grip with a smug look on her face. "Aw, you're not so bad after all, are you?"

With an exasperated sigh, Snatcher used his powers to catch up with Mustache Girl. "Don't push it, kiddo."

Once the trio managed to get into the castle, they realized it was completely empty, save for a few odd noises here and there. The golden spears which belonged to the guards were on the floor, as well as their armor, almost like they were vaporized where they stood, and yet, due to how many there were, it seemed odd that she would attack her own castle guard. It was getting dark, with the sunset filtering through the dangerously large windows in a soft orange light.

The castle seemed devoid of life and abandoned, much like Queen Vanessa's manor minus the snow and cold weather.

"Everyone tread lightly. There are no guards about, but it's way too quiet-" Mustache Girl started, but a loud wailing sound made her sentence stop.

One of Sehan's warships was seen losing control through the window, spinning and blinking with an intensity that of which something or someone could have attacked it out of the skies. Falling into the forest near the castle, it exploded in a brilliant bright-orange light, the fire around it catching the Wisteria trees and setting them ablaze.

Snatcher hid Hat Kid's eyes from the eruption by turning away from the forest, then started to shove Mustache Girl forward, who was currently in awe over the large warship managing to fall in such a horrible display.

"Come on. We have to find yours and Hat Kid's belongings." Snatcher demanded, already scaling the steps.

He would teleport to the top using his power, but he didn't want to cause suspicion in case anyone was already in Hat Kid's room.

Mustache Girl hurried along and reached the stairs before the ghost could, then looked down the hallway. "I need to find my outfit first too! Don't worry, I'll be back soon. We'll meet up in front of her room, okay?"

Snatcher nodded and the blonde haired girl scurried off, while also being mindful of any guards or Queen Ophelia along the way.

Setting Hat Kid on the ground, Snatcher allowed the brown haired girl to open the door to the bedroom and floated inside.

He watched her sigh in relief after realizing all of her hats were in perfect condition, and none of them were missing. Checking the drawers, Hat Kid found her signature outfit and showed it to Snatcher, who nodded without his usual smile.

The little girl went into the bathroom to get dressed, and Snatcher passed the time by checking out her room one last time before the final battle. On the wall above her dresser, was a family photo of the king, Queen Ophelia, and a much younger version of Hat Kid, most likely when she was only a toddler.

It was such a small, simple feeling. Remembering how much Hat Kid has grown into the girl she is today.

A little brat, sure, but a girl who fought for what was right instead of only doing things for herself.

And yet, Snatcher's chest area ached after realizing she will be fighting her own mother. It dawned on him that their arrival on Sehan was a day ago, and their second day of being here wasn't even over. The queen drove herself over the edge purely from her husbands death alone. Queen Vanessa was practically the same, locking him up in the cellar so many years ago. Queen Ophelia and Queen Vanessa were scarily similar with how much they wanted to control people purely for their own gain.

Once the bathroom door opened, Hat Kid stepped out, wearing her top hat and outfit she loved so much. Her hair was tied into a ponytail with strands of hair meeting her cheeks, just like the way she always wears it.

As she walked, she fixed her sleeve and opened her arms as if to show off to Snatcher how nice it looked.

The ghost laughed and nodded, then watched her grab the umbrella and all of her other hats so that she could be ready.

"Hey, kiddo..." Snatcher started, while watching her prepare for the battle ahead.

She looked over at him once, then back to her hats to make sure no damage was done to them, as well as her badges. Her back was to him as she checked all of her belongings.

"Are you sure you're ready to fight your own mother?" He saw her slowly put down the hat she had in her hand and glanced over her shoulder, but didn't say anything. Snatcher tried again. "I'm just saying there might be a possibility of you losing against her. We'll make sure to help you out, but since she has the power of the Time Pieces, you might lose over and over again. Just saying."

Packing her stuff away and walking towards the door, she sighs and replies, "Ophelia will always be my mother... but for now she's my enemy."

Snatcher shook his head, and the ghostly mane-like collar around his neck swayed as he did so. "She's our enemy. We're not letting you do this alone, kiddo."

Without another word, the ghost and the little girl leave the room to find Mustache Girl in her usual hooded outfit with her arms crossed.

"You guys ready?" Mustache Girl asked, noticing Hat Kid's determined look.

High-fiving the mustached girl, Hat Kid exclaims, "Let's finish this!"

Now ready, the trio searches the castle for the Conductor and DJ Grooves, now ready to face the battle ahead.


	7. Bad Ending (Forgive)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A terrible secret is revealed about the power of the Time Pieces. Hat Kid and her friends fight Queen Ophelia, while also solving some differences.

The Conductor and DJ Grooves were wandering around the castle without any idea about where they were going, despite finding knives in the kitchen to protect themselves when the opportunity was needed. In the time it took for the entire day to pass, the castle had become empty, barren, and quite frankly, abandoned to the point where it was as if they had stumbled upon a ghost-town. The wallpaper which has been beautifully done, with its blues, greens, and reds, had faded into a horrible colorful mess that seemed impossible to destroy within a day with how nice the castle had been the day they arrived. There was something definitely wrong with this place, especially since it was rundown within a blink of an eye.

Maids, butlers, cooks, castle guards, even townspeople, all seemingly disappeared in less than a few hours as the the owl and the Moon Penguin discussed their next movie, ignorant to the troubles their friends were going through at this very moment. Furniture was strewn about in a horrible and messy manner as well, but it was like they haven't been touched in years, in some rooms that have been shut for a very long time. The golden armor belonging to the castle guard laid on the floor with the spear at its side, which prompted the Conductor and DJ Grooves to keep their defense up in case they came face to face with Queen Ophelia in her overpowered state. They know the power of the Time Pieces and what it does to your head, and with Hat Kid's mother it's very clear that she knows how to use the Time Pieces for her selfishness.

So for now, the two of them were as close as possible, with their arms touching, in case anything were to happen, and their weapons were drawn as if they were ready to fight any minute now. The Conductor peered over a corner to check and make sure the coast was clear, then nodded towards DJ Grooves to confirm that it was safe to come out. The two of them started running together down the moonlit hallway, despite the danger that could potentially lay ahead. Their main priority was getting Hat Kid and the others to go home, but once chaos ensued there was no real way of knowing where any of them were. Despite their differences, the Moon Penguin and the owl had no choice but to work together in the hopes of finding a way to go home, and end Queen Ophelia's reign of terror once and for all, and hopefully, fight her without actually killing her.

"W-What are we going to do about Hat Kid's spaceship, Conductor? The Time Pieces are inside of that vault of hers and if they get it open-" DJ Grooves tried to say while out of breath.

The Conductor sneered and replied back, "With all the pecking nonsense that's going down right this moment, I think Queen Ophelia already has the Time Pieces. I ain't seen another human in hours, so where else would they have gone?"

DJ Grooves thought for moment and agreed with the Conductor. It was odd that no one was around, despite the castle being densely populated just before the sun rose earlier that day. An entire kingdom of people wouldn't just disappear like that, not without some kind of magical force destroying them and leaving at least something behind, like ashes.

The Conductor heard a strange noise down another hallway, then taking action, stopped DJ Grooves in his tracks by shoving both himself and the penguin against the stripped wallpaper. DJ Grooves let out a grunt before quietly shutting himself up, then let the Conductor peer around the corner with his knife brandished.

The owl grimaced and, despite not having eyes, looked to his enemy turned friend. "Look, laddie, I'm sorry for getting us into this mess. Once we get off of this darned planet, we'll make a movie Dead Bird Studio will be proud of, ya hear me?"

Taken aback, DJ Grooves opens his beak as if to say something along the lines of encouragement, but the only sentence he could get out was, "Let's make our next blockbuster, darling."

Before brandishing his own knife and getting into a battle stance. If it was the queen rounding the corner, both the Conductor and DJ Grooves would go down fighting, in the hopes that Hat Kid, Snatcher, and Mustache Girl would all get to go home with a story to tell to the Express Owls and the Moon Penguins. How they could set aside their differences and finally work together to make things right, and in doing so, become friends. They got their weapons ready, then let out a battle cry as they rounded the corner, holding their weapons up high.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Mustache Girl closed the door to another disheveled and deserted room and sighed. "Another empty room. Where the heck are they?"

Mustache Girl had found a rock to use as a weapon, but other than that she had nothing but her wits and determination. Hat Kid followed close behind blonde haired girl with an umbrella at her shoulder without any intention of putting it away. At a time like this, she really missed her sticker-filled baseball bat. Then there was Snatcher who stayed behind them in the shadows with only his eyes providing them a light source, since the part of the castle they were in didn't have any windows, meaning no moonlight to guide their way through the twisting hallways. Their best bet of finding Queen Ophelia was in the throne room, but their main goal was finding the Conductor and DJ Grooves before doing anything else.

"Maybe they're looking for us too and they're in another part of the castle entirely." Snatcher suggested, before checking another room again.

Hat Kid spoke up in a low whisper, "Well, we can't slip up. Otherwise we'll all be lost. But, if we do end up going our separate ways, we meet in the throne room. Understood?"

Mustache Girl let out a groan and opened another door with an angry look on her face.

"If it wasn't for that stupid owl we wouldn't be in this mess. Why did you forgive him when he acted like such a jerk?" Letting her anger get the better of her, Mustache Girl slammed the door shut and started stomping down the hallway.

"Kid, shut it! Otherwise you'll get us caught-" Snatcher tried to say in an angry manner, but Mustache Girl quickly turned around and looked around the dark hallway. "Do you see anyone here? It's as if this place has been abandoned for years!"

Hat Kid got her umbrella ready in case anyone heard the door slam, but compared to her mother's powers, an umbrella was nothing but an object that could be broken into pieces.

"That still means we should be quiet." Hat Kid hissed, then opened another door in the hopes that they were huddled somewhere in the corner of the room, but found nothing, so she quietly closed it and continued walking.

"You know, maybe we should split-"

In almost an instant, the Conductor and DJ Grooves came around the corner with their weapons drawn and a yell escaping their throats.

Mustache Girl let out a scream and hid behind Snatcher, who in turn shoved her away with a taunting laugh. There was no light down this hallway, so when Snatcher looked towards them with his eyes glowing bright, they stopped dead in their tracks and drops their knives to the floor with shocked expressions.

Hat Kid grinned and exclaimed, "Grooves! Conductor! It's us!"

With her arms out, she wrapped them both in a big hug.

The Conductor and DJ Grooves breathed a sigh of relief and hugged back with grins on their faces.

"We can't tell you how happy we are to see you, lassie." Conductor sighed out, patting her on the back.

Grooves did the same, while saying, "Oh, darling, you nearly gave us a heart attack."

Mustache Girl and Snatcher watched from the shadows with impatient looks in their eyes, then looked to one another and rolled their eyes at the same time.

The Snatcher floated over and waved his arms as if he was signaling them to hurry to the throne room, "Okay! Wonderful, we found the owl and the penguin. Now, can we save the hugs for after the final battle, please? I'd like to get back to my forest before my minions wreck everything."

Picking up their knives, Mustache Girl hands them to the two birds and everyone gets ready. She turns to Hat Kid and nods, "Hat Kid, we're going to help you out with this fight, but... are YOU ready to do this?"

Without another thought, Hat Kid nods and says, "Heck yeah, I'm ready."

The team hurries to the throne room while following Hat Kid, and without saying another word.

They follow her since she knows where to go, but in actuality, she was more nervous than she let on. This fight determines the future of Sehan, her mother, and whether or not she gets to go home with all of her friends. If she fails, there's no going back now. She'll be stuck as Princess Seraphina, heir to the throne of Sehan.

As quickly as they started, they were met face to face with the giant metal doors of the throne room. Gold was painted on the pillars, much like the Mafia Boss' Headquarters, although it was more rundown and less shiny. Hat Kid could hear her spaceship's engine inside of the throne room, which most likely means the repairman crashed the ship into the castle.

"Ready, Hat Kid?" Snatcher asked, ready to cast magic so that the door would open. Hat Kid got her umbrella ready and nodded, then, using his power, made the door crash open. The five friends burst inside, and stared in awe over how similar the throne room looked to both Mustache Girl's and Mafia Boss' throne room looked like.

Reds and golds decorated the walls and ceilings, and a large crystal chandelier hung above the checkered floor in a vast display of elegance. Three thrones were at the far end of the room, with the moon providing light through the windows in order for everyone to see.

Indeed, Hat Kid's precious spaceship had been crashed through brick and stone and into the castle, where all of the Time Pieces had been emptied from their vault.

A slow clap resonated off the walls of the severely empty castle, leaving Hat Kid's usually determined nature turning to stomach-dropping regret.

Through the moonlight, she could see a woman, with one leg over the other, clapping sorrowfully over that fact that Hat Kid and her friends still had the nerve to try and fight her, despite being so powerful. Dozens of Time Pieces lay at her feet, lighting up the chairs in a sort of theatrical way. As for the queen, her clapping abruptly ended and she looked up from the floor.

Hat Kid could see it in her eyes, how much pain her mother was in at this very moment. She was glowing red, blue, yellow... as if all of the colors had rolled into one, coursing through her body in endless power and suffering.

"Seraphina," Her mother whispered, but if anything her voice was a low growl, "Why do you keep getting in my way?"

Her voice was shaky, almost like she was holding in more power than she could handle. Time Pieces weren't meant to be consumed by an individual, they were time itself. Mustache Girl winced as the queen slumped over as she tried to stand to her feet, her legs and arms seemingly having no control.

"Come, sit next to your mama. We can rule a kingdom together, and your friends can be long gone."

Hat Kid stood her ground, and began to use her umbrella's charge to unleash a beam of energy towards her mother's form. As if expecting the attack without even looking at them, the queen brushes the attack aside with one fell swoop of a wave. The energy beam broke apart a wall, and a breeze soon came in.

"You dare attack me?" The queen exclaimed, before teleporting off her chair and starting the battle.

Catching the Conductor off guard, she teleporting above him and ripped the knife from his hands, then pushed him to the floor with a grunt. Mustache Girl threw her rock and did a homing attack at the same time to get Queen Ophelia off of the Conductor while everyone else did their part. Hat Kid tried to send another beam of energy towards her mother using the umbrella, DJ Grooves tried to slash Ophelia with his knife, causing the barrier around her to bounce the knife off of it. This causes DJ Grooves to stumble back and force Hat Kid to send the beam away so that the light doesn't get deflected off the shield and back onto her. This causes yet another hole in the castle walls, leading to falling debris like rocks and bricks. Snatcher looks up to the ceiling and signals for Hat Kid to send a beam of energy again by pointing upwards, before whispering something into the Conductor's ear as he helped him up.

Mustache Girl, DJ Grooves, and the Conductor all did their best to force the queen under a part of the ceiling that was slowly falling apart, to which Hat Kid would use her beam attack to destroy the ceiling so that the barrier protecting her mother would be destroyed. This battle was only just beginning, and right now it seemed complicated already. The queen used the barrier to jump into the air, then brought it down upon snatcher, who had laughed as it merely phased through him.

"Try better than that!" Snatcher exclaimed, using this opportunity to create a powerful blast on the ground, much like the first phase of attacks when he fights Hat Kid back in the forest.

Queen Ophelia's eyes widen as the blast sends her flying against the wall, only for the barrier to stop her from breaking her spine and merely fall to the floor. She sends out a poorly done beam of energy, her long brown hair obscuring her vision and her dress torn from the knees down.

Mustache Girl nearly misses the one-hit attack, and Hat Kid reassures her by putting a hand on her back. As her mother charges another attack, Hat Kid charges her own using the umbrella, aiming for the ceiling above her mother.

The queen see's the charged beam of light, and braces for it by reinforcing the barrier surrounding her. The beam completely misses the queen, then shoots a hole directly through the ceiling, which prompts Ophelia to look up and laugh.

DJ Grooves silently cheers knowing she let her guard down enough to the point where she actually started laughing.

"Foolish child..." She breaths out, taking a step forward, "You missed-"

A pile of heavy bricks and rocks tumbled onto the barrier, ultimately breaking it in the process and burying Hat Kid's mother in the rubble. Hat Kid's eyes welled with tears after realizing just how painful it must have felt, getting pelted with the same materials which make up a castle.

The Conductor brandished his weapon and clenched his fist together, "Don't let yer guard's down, either of you."

There was a noticeable cut on his cheek from where her mother had thrown him to the ground. Everyone got ready in case she were to get up again, but Hat Kid couldn't help but feel like she should do something about it, and feel some sort of sympathy with how much it must hurt.

But, the Conductor was right in knowing the battle wasn't over. The rocks covering the queen swirled around and lifted up on their own, as if she still had fight left in her despite having the equivalent of a boulder dropped onto her head.

Although, her barrier had been reinforced, so with how powerful she was right now, it must have seemed like nothing more than a large object being thrown at her.

Using her powers to pelt the rocks towards Hat Kid and her friends, Hat Kid tried to doge her attacks by jumping midair and hopefully send out a beam attack, do a homing attack, or simply hit her with an umbrella.

"You realize that didn't hurt, don't you? I hope you understand that I've still got a fighting spirit left in me. After all, I'm not done yet..." Queen Ophelia looked up, her head was bleeding, with the entire left side of her hair stuck together in a red mess.

Her dress was in tatters now, and her eyes were locked on Hat Kid's form only, but the barrier was down.

The only thing Hat Kid had to do was dodge her attacks, much like any other boss fight, then attack at random intervals, then collect her Time Pieces and get home with her friends.

Snatcher and DJ Grooves attacked together with their knives drawn, but each and every time they tried to slash at Hat Kid's mother, she pushed them aside like they were nothing, especially since they barely reached her waist. Snatcher on the other hand was more than capable of taking care of the queen, such as using his beams again, to which she immediately dodged it.

Mustache Girl was always one step ahead, where if Ophelia were to have barely dodged a beam of energy, she would do a homing attack and send the queen flying back onto the floor.

Bruised, bloody, and exhausted beyond fighting spirit, Queen Ophelia took in a few shallow breaths that eventually turned into one long inhale. Hat Kid's companions froze mid-attack after noticing just how battered the queen had become and let her rest. Even after all the fighting, she didn't deserve to be attacked while she was down.

"This kingdom... you've seen what it's become, haven't you?" The queen gasped out, tired near the point of exhaustion where she could barely get up without her legs going out from under her, "Everyone is gone. This castle is practically abandoned, but... do you know why?" She coughed, then winced as she put a hand to her head.

As the queen brought her hand away, her palm had been painted red with the blood from the wound, and she winced involuntarily. Even with a concussion, and when her head pounded, she still tried to speak to her daughter and her friends.

The Conductor lowered his knife. "If you would stop fighting us we could listen to ye. We need those Time Pieces to get home."

The queen sighed and slumped onto the floor with her head lolling off to the side. "This kingdom... it's all fake. I used the power of the Time Pieces to create Sehan in my vision. A time before everyone left when they found out I had destroyed the moon colony, when they found out I had choked my own daughter."

Mustache Girl gasped and looked to Hat Kid in disbelief, who was still clutching her umbrella tightly. Hat Kid didn't want to stare at her mother, so she simply stared at the floor.

"When they found out what I had done, everyone left my kingdom and abandoned me; as a punishment for my crimes. But what they didn't know, was that I still had the power of the Time Pieces. Every single person you have met, every single piece of food you ate, the clothing, everything... it was all made by me. My people were nothing more than puppets, obeying every word I said."

DJ Grooves was still in shock after realizing that the moon was inhabited, and that his sweet darling was abused in such manner.

He tightened his grip on the knife and screamed, "So you've been lying to us this whole time? Then why keep us here? Why show us something that wasn't real-"

Queen Ophelia struggled to stand and silenced him by casting a beam of light at him, nearly throwing him to the wall.

The Conductor opened his mouth, "Grooves! You no good bloody peck-neck! We don't care about your stupid sob story, we just want to go home!"

Ophelia ignored him and walked over to Hat Kid, before squatting down and sighing. She knew she couldn't win with how much pain she was in, but moreover, she didn't want to submit her daughter to so much pain.

"Seraphina, you must understand, this kingdom was created by me. Each and every resident was created by the power I have from a Time Piece. I don't wish to fight you... You can have your Time Pieces back. As long as you leave with your friends... and with your Time Pieces."

Hat Kid couldn't help but be confused, where just a minute ago DJ Grooves was thrown against the wall purely for speaking out of line.

Offering Hat Kid her hand, Queen Ophelia asked, "Please sweetheart, take my hand, and I'll make sure that everything goes back to the way it was. You're welcome to come here anytime you like with anyone of your friends, but no one will remember what happened here today. I can make it so."

Staring down at her mother's hand, Hat Kid asked, "Promise? You'll let us come here whenever we want?"

The queen looked to Hat Kid's friends, who had put on the meanest faces they could make, thinking this was simply a trap.

The queen sighed and nodded. "It's a promise. Your Time Pieces, your spaceship, your memories... everything will go back to the way it should be. It will all be changed. Down to even the simplest of details."

Mustache Girl crossed her arms, then replied, "Well, it's better than being scarred for seeing a warship crash onto a pile of trees."

DJ Grooves limped over with the Conductor at his side, but their knives were discarded, save for the Conductor's sharpened one.

Snatcher crossed his long arms and huffed, "Yeah, well, I don't like this idea. It's almost as if everything we've done today was for nothing. An entire adventure down the drainpipe. But I guess that all depends on Hat Kid."

Still holding out her hand, her mother asks, "Would you like to change the past and bring the kingdom back to its former glory?"

{Bad Ending}

With a small nod, Hat Kid hugs her mother close and wraps her arms around her while starting to quietly sob.

Queen Ophelia holds her daughter back and sighs while patting her back in a soothing matter, then whispers, "It's alright." and "You did the right thing." over and over again.

Her friends watched on as Hat Kid gripped her mother's tattered and bloody dress in a relieved matter, while also feeling nervous over the fact her entire memory will be changed. She'll no longer have a remorseful relationship with her mother, but instead a friendly one, where she's welcome to stay at the castle whenever she pleases.

Snatcher, DJ Grooves, the Conductor, and Mustache Girl didn't mind this too much, but to them it still felt wrong brainwashing the past and making everything normal.

The Time Pieces are distributed back to Hat Kid and her friends, and Queen Ophelia is left with the only one she uses to keep her kingdom alive and well. This means that as Hat Kid cried in her mother's arms, everything around her fixed itself and the castle was restored back to its former glory, with the chandelier now lighting up the moonlit room in a soft yellow glow.

The spaceship was sent back into the reparations building, and the repairman was sleeping on a chair inside his workshop. Rumbi was put back together and was happily cleaning the floors of the now fixed spaceship.

Hat Kid opened her eyes, she saw that her mother's clothes and hair had been fixed up and a smile adorned her face. The wound on the side of her head was no longer there either, but Queen Ophelia's skin seemed oddly pale at the moment.

Hat Kid's friends surrounded her, Mustache Girl with her arms crossed, DJ Grooves and the Conductor chatting about their next movie, and Snatcher complaining about how she was a "crybaby".

Wiping away the falling tears from her eyes, Hat Kid pulls herself out of her mother's grip and puts her hands behind her back. "Mother, why was I crying just now?"

Queen Ophelia looked emotionally distraught by what she said, but Hat Kid didn't understand why. That was the power of the Time Pieces, the queen could remember what happened, but anyone else could not. Her mother could feel a tear start to form, but she quickly blinked it away and grabbed her daughter's hand.

"You were crying about how much you were going to miss this place... and me." As everyone started walking towards the spaceship, Queen Ophelia continued, "You know, you are welcome here whenever you like. As future queen of this kingdom, this is your second home, although... it will be a couple thousand years before I die though, haha!"

Mustache Girl stopped and turned around, "You're going to live over a thousand years?"

"W-Well, yes. Our species is a lot different than yours. But it's alright, you needn't dwell on it. After all, it's rude to ask a lady how old she is." Queen Ophelia winked, before gaining a groan from Snatcher. 

"So then that means I'm stuck with the hat brat until Armageddon strikes, huh? Ain't that great." Snatcher grumbled, causing Hat Kid to look up at him with a smug look in her eyes.

DJ Grooves and the Conductor spoke up at the same time, mostly saying, "Then she'll get to star in our movies!" Prompting a small chuckle from everyone knowing they were on the same page.

Nearing the spaceship, Hat Kid let go of her mother's hand and opened the glass door to her spaceship. "It's in perfect condition! C'mon everybody, let's go home!"

Hopping inside, she greeted Rumbi, who had done a serious of excited jumps to congratulate her on returning. Mustache Girl was the next to hop inside, while waving to the queen.

DJ Grooves and the Conductor thanked the queen for the visit, then went inside as well, asking Hat Kid for some food, which she gladly obliged to by finding her stash of cookies and milk.

All that was left was Snatcher, who had a serious look on his face.

"Do you feel good about yourself? Lying to a child about the truth of your kingdom?" He asked, to which the queen looked up to the broken moon and sighed.

"It's better for her not to know. She's still so young, and without my husband I had no way of raising a daughter after everything-"

"She was still your daughter, Ophelia. Kingdom or not, it was your responsibility to love and respect her and teach her how the world is supposed to work. And you took it for granted."

Queen Ophelia nodded slowly, and squeezed her eyes shut as if holding in her tears. "Sometimes... I wish that it was I who was murdered instead of Seraphina's father. He was always there for her, while I was so busy that I could barely even see her."

Snatcher's mouth curled into a frown and huffed. "Look, we really have to leave so-"

"And besides, why didn't you tell me that brainwashing doesn't affect ghosts? Does that mean you remember everything that I've... done?" Per usual, Queen Ophelia cut him off, much like she does with Hat Kid whenever she tried to talk.

The Snatcher laughed and used his magic to open the spaceship door. "I remember, but that doesn't mean I'll be telling the kid. Welp, I think it's time I share some cookies with your brat. Toodles!" He exclaimed, shutting the glass door with a big grin.

Queen Ophelia tried to hold a sneer, but as Hat Kid came to the captain's chair and locked eyes with her daughter, the two of them waved and Hat Kid started her ship.

"Everyone ready to go home?" She exclaimed, keeping her hand on the lever. They all cheered in agreement, then Hat Kid, with an oblivious smile on her face, left Sehan to her mother, who had created a kingdom of nothing but puppets and lies. But if Queen Ophelia was happy, the kingdom could rejoice.


	8. Neutral Ending (Truce)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hat Kid and her friends battle her mother and bring the kingdom back to normal, but Queen Ophelia is not going to associate herself with anyone aside from her kingdom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The beginning will start the same as the "Bad Ending" with Hat Kid and her friends fighting her mother, but the ending will be slightly different with a noticeable change. If you wish to skip to the ending feel free to do so.

The Conductor and DJ Grooves were wandering around the castle without any idea about where they were going, despite finding knives in the kitchen to protect themselves when the opportunity was needed. In the time it took for the entire day to pass, the castle had become empty, barren, and quite frankly, abandoned to the point where it was as if they had stumbled upon a ghost-town. The wallpaper which has been beautifully done, with its blues, greens, and reds, had faded into a horrible colorful mess that seemed impossible to destroy within a day with how nice the castle had been the day they arrived. There was something definitely wrong with this place, especially since it was rundown within a blink of an eye.

Maids, butlers, cooks, castle guards, even townspeople, all seemingly disappeared in less than a few hours as the the owl and the Moon Penguin discussed their next movie, ignorant to the troubles their friends were going through at this very moment. Furniture was strewn about in a horrible and messy manner as well, but it was like they haven't been touched in years, in some rooms that have been shut for a very long time. The golden armor belonging to the castle guard laid on the floor with the spear at its side, which prompted the Conductor and DJ Grooves to keep their defense up in case they came face to face with Queen Ophelia in her overpowered state. They know the power of the Time Pieces and what it does to your head, and with Hat Kid's mother it's very clear that she knows how to use the Time Pieces for her selfishness.

So for now, the two of them were as close as possible, with their arms touching, in case anything were to happen, and their weapons were drawn as if they were ready to fight any minute now. The Conductor peered over a corner to check and make sure the coast was clear, then nodded towards DJ Grooves to confirm that it was safe to come out. The two of them started running together down the moonlit hallway, despite the danger that could potentially lay ahead. Their main priority was getting Hat Kid and the others to go home, but once chaos ensued there was no real way of knowing where any of them were. Despite their differences, the Moon Penguin and the owl had no choice but to work together in the hopes of finding a way to go home, and end Queen Ophelia's reign of terror once and for all, and hopefully, fight her without actually killing her.

"W-What are we going to do about Hat Kid's spaceship, Conductor? The Time Pieces are inside of that vault of hers and if they get it open-" DJ Grooves tried to say while out of breath.

The Conductor sneered and replied back, "With all the pecking nonsense that's going down right this moment, I think Queen Ophelia already has the Time Pieces. I ain't seen another human in hours, so where else would they have gone?"

DJ Grooves thought for moment and agreed with the Conductor. It was odd that no one was around, despite the castle being densely populated just before the sun rose earlier that day. An entire kingdom of people wouldn't just disappear like that, not without some kind of magical force destroying them and leaving at least something behind, like ashes.

The Conductor heard a strange noise down another hallway, then taking action, stopped DJ Grooves in his tracks by shoving both himself and the penguin against the stripped wallpaper. DJ Grooves let out a grunt before quietly shutting himself up, then let the Conductor peer around the corner with his knife brandished.

The owl grimaced and, despite not having eyes, looked to his enemy turned friend. "Look, laddie, I'm sorry for getting us into this mess. Once we get off of this darned planet, we'll make a movie Dead Bird Studio will be proud of, ya hear me?"

Taken aback, DJ Grooves opens his beak as if to say something along the lines of encouragement, but the only sentence he could get out was, "Let's make our next blockbuster, darling."

Before brandishing his own knife and getting into a battle stance. If it was the queen rounding the corner, both the Conductor and DJ Grooves would go down fighting, in the hopes that Hat Kid, Snatcher, and Mustache Girl would all get to go home with a story to tell to the Express Owls and the Moon Penguins. How they could set aside their differences and finally work together to make things right, and in doing so, become friends. They got their weapons ready, then let out a battle cry as they rounded the corner, holding their weapons up high.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Mustache Girl closed the door to another disheveled and deserted room and sighed. "Another empty room. Where the heck are they?"

Mustache Girl had found a rock to use as a weapon, but other than that she had nothing but her wits and determination. Hat Kid followed close behind blonde haired girl with an umbrella at her shoulder without any intention of putting it away. At a time like this, she really missed her sticker-filled baseball bat. Then there was Snatcher who stayed behind them in the shadows with only his eyes providing them a light source, since the part of the castle they were in didn't have any windows, meaning no moonlight to guide their way through the twisting hallways. Their best bet of finding Queen Ophelia was in the throne room, but their main goal was finding the Conductor and DJ Grooves before doing anything else.

"Maybe they're looking for us too and they're in another part of the castle entirely." Snatcher suggested, before checking another room again.

Hat Kid spoke up in a low whisper, "Well, we can't slip up. Otherwise we'll all be lost. But, if we do end up going our separate ways, we meet in the throne room. Understood?"

Mustache Girl let out a groan and opened another door with an angry look on her face.

"If it wasn't for that stupid owl we wouldn't be in this mess. Why did you forgive him when he acted like such a jerk?" Letting her anger get the better of her, Mustache Girl slammed the door shut and started stomping down the hallway.

"Kid, shut it! Otherwise you'll get us caught-" Snatcher tried to say in an angry manner, but Mustache Girl quickly turned around and looked around the dark hallway. "Do you see anyone here? It's as if this place has been abandoned for years!"

Hat Kid got her umbrella ready in case anyone heard the door slam, but compared to her mother's powers, an umbrella was nothing but an object that could be broken into pieces.

"That still means we should be quiet." Hat Kid hissed, then opened another door in the hopes that they were huddled somewhere in the corner of the room, but found nothing, so she quietly closed it and continued walking.

"You know, maybe we should split-"

In almost an instant, the Conductor and DJ Grooves came around the corner with their weapons drawn and a yell escaping their throats.

Mustache Girl let out a scream and hid behind Snatcher, who in turn shoved her away with a taunting laugh. There was no light down this hallway, so when Snatcher looked towards them with his eyes glowing bright, they stopped dead in their tracks and drops their knives to the floor with shocked expressions.

Hat Kid grinned and exclaimed, "Grooves! Conductor! It's us!"

With her arms out, she wrapped them both in a big hug.

The Conductor and DJ Grooves breathed a sigh of relief and hugged back with grins on their faces.

"We can't tell you how happy we are to see you, lassie." Conductor sighed out, patting her on the back.

Grooves did the same, while saying, "Oh, darling, you nearly gave us a heart attack."

Mustache Girl and Snatcher watched from the shadows with impatient looks in their eyes, then looked to one another and rolled their eyes at the same time.

The Snatcher floated over and waved his arms as if he was signaling them to hurry to the throne room, "Okay! Wonderful, we found the owl and the penguin. Now, can we save the hugs for after the final battle, please? I'd like to get back to my forest before my minions wreck everything."

Picking up their knives, Mustache Girl hands them to the two birds and everyone gets ready. She turns to Hat Kid and nods, "Hat Kid, we're going to help you out with this fight, but... are YOU ready to do this?"

Without another thought, Hat Kid nods and says, "Heck yeah, I'm ready."

The team hurries to the throne room while following Hat Kid, and without saying another word.

They follow her since she knows where to go, but in actuality, she was more nervous than she let on. This fight determines the future of Sehan, her mother, and whether or not she gets to go home with all of her friends. If she fails, there's no going back now. She'll be stuck as Princess Seraphina, heir to the throne of Sehan.

As quickly as they started, they were met face to face with the giant metal doors of the throne room. Gold was painted on the pillars, much like the Mafia Boss' Headquarters, although it was more rundown and less shiny. Hat Kid could hear her spaceship's engine inside of the throne room, which most likely means the repairman crashed the ship into the castle.

"Ready, Hat Kid?" Snatcher asked, ready to cast magic so that the door would open. Hat Kid got her umbrella ready and nodded, then, using his power, made the door crash open. The five friends burst inside, and stared in awe over how similar the throne room looked to both Mustache Girl's and Mafia Boss' throne room looked like.

Reds and golds decorated the walls and ceilings, and a large crystal chandelier hung above the checkered floor in a vast display of elegance. Three thrones were at the far end of the room, with the moon providing light through the windows in order for everyone to see.

Indeed, Hat Kid's precious spaceship had been crashed through brick and stone and into the castle, where all of the Time Pieces had been emptied from their vault.

A slow clap resonated off the walls of the severely empty castle, leaving Hat Kid's usually determined nature turning to stomach-dropping regret.

Through the moonlight, she could see a woman, with one leg over the other, clapping sorrowfully over that fact that Hat Kid and her friends still had the nerve to try and fight her, despite being so powerful. Dozens of Time Pieces lay at her feet, lighting up the chairs in a sort of theatrical way. As for the queen, her clapping abruptly ended and she looked up from the floor.

Hat Kid could see it in her eyes, how much pain her mother was in at this very moment. She was glowing red, blue, yellow... as if all of the colors had rolled into one, coursing through her body in endless power and suffering.

"Seraphina," Her mother whispered, but if anything her voice was a low growl, "Why do you keep getting in my way?"

Her voice was shaky, almost like she was holding in more power than she could handle. Time Pieces weren't meant to be consumed by an individual, they were time itself. Mustache Girl winced as the queen slumped over as she tried to stand to her feet, her legs and arms seemingly having no control.

"Come, sit next to your mama. We can rule a kingdom together, and your friends can be long gone."

Hat Kid stood her ground, and began to use her umbrella's charge to unleash a beam of energy towards her mother's form. As if expecting the attack without even looking at them, the queen brushes the attack aside with one fell swoop of a wave. The energy beam broke apart a wall, and a breeze soon came in.

"You dare attack me?" The queen exclaimed, before teleporting off her chair and starting the battle.

Catching the Conductor off guard, she teleporting above him and ripped the knife from his hands, then pushed him to the floor with a grunt. Mustache Girl threw her rock and did a homing attack at the same time to get Queen Ophelia off of the Conductor while everyone else did their part. Hat Kid tried to send another beam of energy towards her mother using the umbrella, DJ Grooves tried to slash Ophelia with his knife, causing the barrier around her to bounce the knife off of it. This causes DJ Grooves to stumble back and force Hat Kid to send the beam away so that the light doesn't get deflected off the shield and back onto her. This causes yet another hole in the castle walls, leading to falling debris like rocks and bricks. Snatcher looks up to the ceiling and signals for Hat Kid to send a beam of energy again by pointing upwards, before whispering something into the Conductor's ear as he helped him up.

Mustache Girl, DJ Grooves, and the Conductor all did their best to force the queen under a part of the ceiling that was slowly falling apart, to which Hat Kid would use her beam attack to destroy the ceiling so that the barrier protecting her mother would be destroyed. This battle was only just beginning, and right now it seemed complicated already. The queen used the barrier to jump into the air, then brought it down upon snatcher, who had laughed as it merely phased through him.

"Try better than that!" Snatcher exclaimed, using this opportunity to create a powerful blast on the ground, much like the first phase of attacks when he fights Hat Kid back in the forest.

Queen Ophelia's eyes widen as the blast sends her flying against the wall, only for the barrier to stop her from breaking her spine and merely fall to the floor. She sends out a poorly done beam of energy, her long brown hair obscuring her vision and her dress torn from the knees down.

Mustache Girl nearly misses the one-hit attack, and Hat Kid reassures her by putting a hand on her back. As her mother charges another attack, Hat Kid charges her own using the umbrella, aiming for the ceiling above her mother.

The queen see's the charged beam of light, and braces for it by reinforcing the barrier surrounding her. The beam completely misses the queen, then shoots a hole directly through the ceiling, which prompts Ophelia to look up and laugh.

DJ Grooves silently cheers knowing she let her guard down enough to the point where she actually started laughing.

"Foolish child..." She breaths out, taking a step forward, "You missed-"

A pile of heavy bricks and rocks tumbled onto the barrier, ultimately breaking it in the process and burying Hat Kid's mother in the rubble. Hat Kid's eyes welled with tears after realizing just how painful it must have felt, getting pelted with the same materials which make up a castle.

The Conductor brandished his weapon and clenched his fist together, "Don't let yer guard's down, either of you."

There was a noticeable cut on his cheek from where her mother had thrown him to the ground. Everyone got ready in case she were to get up again, but Hat Kid couldn't help but feel like she should do something about it, and feel some sort of sympathy with how much it must hurt.

But, the Conductor was right in knowing the battle wasn't over. The rocks covering the queen swirled around and lifted up on their own, as if she still had fight left in her despite having the equivalent of a boulder dropped onto her head.

Although, her barrier had been reinforced, so with how powerful she was right now, it must have seemed like nothing more than a large object being thrown at her.

Using her powers to pelt the rocks towards Hat Kid and her friends, Hat Kid tried to doge her attacks by jumping midair and hopefully send out a beam attack, do a homing attack, or simply hit her with an umbrella.

"You realize that didn't hurt, don't you? I hope you understand that I've still got a fighting spirit left in me. After all, I'm not done yet..." Queen Ophelia looked up, her head was bleeding, with the entire left side of her hair stuck together in a red mess.

Her dress was in tatters now, and her eyes were locked on Hat Kid's form only, but the barrier was down.

The only thing Hat Kid had to do was dodge her attacks, much like any other boss fight, then attack at random intervals, then collect her Time Pieces and get home with her friends.

Snatcher and DJ Grooves attacked together with their knives drawn, but each and every time they tried to slash at Hat Kid's mother, she pushed them aside like they were nothing, especially since they barely reached her waist. Snatcher on the other hand was more than capable of taking care of the queen, such as using his beams again, to which she immediately dodged it.

Mustache Girl was always one step ahead, where if Ophelia were to have barely dodged a beam of energy, she would do a homing attack and send the queen flying back onto the floor.

Bruised, bloody, and exhausted beyond fighting spirit, Queen Ophelia took in a few shallow breaths that eventually turned into one long inhale. Hat Kid's companions froze mid-attack after noticing just how battered the queen had become and let her rest. Even after all the fighting, she didn't deserve to be attacked while she was down.

"This kingdom... you've seen what it's become, haven't you?" The queen gasped out, tired near the point of exhaustion where she could barely get up without her legs going out from under her, "Everyone is gone. This castle is practically abandoned, but... do you know why?" She coughed, then winced as she put a hand to her head.

As the queen brought her hand away, her palm had been painted red with the blood from the wound, and she winced involuntarily. Even with a concussion, and when her head pounded, she still tried to speak to her daughter and her friends.

The Conductor lowered his knife. "If you would stop fighting us we could listen to ye. We need those Time Pieces to get home."

The queen sighed and slumped onto the floor with her head lolling off to the side. "This kingdom... it's all fake. I used the power of the Time Pieces to create Sehan in my vision. A time before everyone left when they found out I had destroyed the moon colony, when they found out I had choked my own daughter."

Mustache Girl gasped and looked to Hat Kid in disbelief, who was still clutching her umbrella tightly. Hat Kid didn't want to stare at her mother, so she simply stared at the floor.

"When they found out what I had done, everyone left my kingdom and abandoned me; as a punishment for my crimes. But what they didn't know, was that I still had the power of the Time Pieces. Every single person you have met, every single piece of food you ate, the clothing, everything... it was all made by me. My people were nothing more than puppets, obeying every word I said."

DJ Grooves was still in shock after realizing that the moon was inhabited, and that his sweet darling was abused in such manner.

He tightened his grip on the knife and screamed, "So you've been lying to us this whole time? Then why keep us here? Why show us something that wasn't real-"

Queen Ophelia struggled to stand and silenced him by casting a beam of light at him, nearly throwing him to the wall.

The Conductor opened his mouth, "Grooves! You no good bloody peck-neck! We don't care about your stupid sob story, we just want to go home!"

Ophelia ignored him and walked over to Hat Kid, before squatting down and sighing. She knew she couldn't win with how much pain she was in, but moreover, she didn't want to submit her daughter to so much pain.

"Seraphina, you must understand, this kingdom was created by me. Each and every resident was created by the power I have from a Time Piece. I don't wish to fight you... You can have your Time Pieces back. As long as you leave with your friends... and with your Time Pieces."

Hat Kid couldn't help but be confused, where just a minute ago DJ Grooves was thrown against the wall purely for speaking out of line.

Offering Hat Kid her hand, Queen Ophelia asked, "Please sweetheart, take my hand, and I'll make sure that everything goes back to the way it was. You're welcome to come here anytime you like with anyone of your friends, but no one will remember what happened here today. I can make it so."

Staring down at her mother's hand, Hat Kid asked, "Promise? You'll let us come here whenever we want?"

The queen looked to Hat Kid's friends, who had put on the meanest faces they could make, thinking this was simply a trap.

The queen sighed and nodded. "It's a promise. Your Time Pieces, your spaceship, your memories... everything will go back to the way it should be. It will all be changed. Down to even the simplest of details."

Mustache Girl crossed her arms, then replied, "Well, it's better than being scarred for seeing a warship crash onto a pile of trees."

DJ Grooves limped over with the Conductor at his side, but their knives were discarded, save for the Conductor's sharpened one.

Snatcher crossed his long arms and huffed, "Yeah, well, I don't like this idea. It's almost as if everything we've done today was for nothing. An entire adventure down the drainpipe. But I guess that all depends on Hat Kid."

Still holding out her hand, her mother asks, "Would you like to change the past and bring the kingdom back to its former glory?"

{Neutral Ending}

Hat Kid took a step back, her eyes trained on her mother's palm as rubble continued falling from the disintegrating castle. Twiddling her hands together, she turned to her friends for guidance, and was met with her mother's hand per usual, making her daughter's eyes lock only with hers.

They looked so alike, it was as if Queen Ophelia and Seraphina had looked into a mirror to meet their past and future selves. "I'm asking this only from you, my daughter. Your friends have no say in the matter. Now, I'm going to repeat myself again. Will you, as my daughter, forgive me and leave this place?"

Grasping her mother's hand, she gave it a firm squeeze and gave her mother a handshake, almost as if they were performing a formal business indenture.

Hat Kid replied, with a half smile, "What happens if we come back? A warm welcome? Or a whole armada coming to wipe us out?"

Queen Ophelia struggled to come to her feet with one hand leaning on her leg and her other hand keeping her steady on the floor. She looked physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausted. "You will still be the queen of this "kingdom" whether you like it or not, meaning that when I perish, all of this will be yours."

Hat Kid looked hesitant from that answer. Nothing was really fixed between them, they had just called an eternal truce whether they liked it or not.

"Now hold on!" The Conductor shrieked, prompting Mustache Girl to cover her ears at the deafening loudness of it.

"You... Throughout this entire adventure, which was only a day and a half, mind you, you just expect us to be on good terms wit' you? Keep in mind that your kingdom ain't even a kingdom! They're all just constructs from your pathetic excuse of a mind before everything went haywire. If we get to leave, with the Time Pieces, we are never coming back. You hear me, lassie?"

Queen Ophelia made a "tsk-tsk" noise and limped over to the owl who was much smaller than her. "Watch your mouth, otherwise I won't give you the chance to leave. Consider this something out of the kindness of my heart."

The Snatcher huffed and grumbled, "Ha, kindness..." Before crossing his arms and looking down at the floor, prompting Hat Kid to turn around again.

"Mother... We're not going to get our memories wiped so you can feel better about yourself. I'm taking my Time Pieces back, as well as my spaceship."

Almost instantaneously, the castle was restored to its former glory and the spaceship had no longer formed a giant hole where it had originally crashed. The Time Pieces were safely tucked away into the vault of the newly repaired ship, which was on the floor of the reparations building and waiting for liftoff. The townspeople, inside their houses, had lit their candles and closed their blinds to get to sleep, with the large crescent moon watching over them from above. To Hat Kid and her friends, this was exactly the ending they wanted. Queen Ophelia however, did not want this. Instead, everything was back to the way it should be, something she couldn't get used to, surprisingly.

No matter how long she's been a queen of a fake kingdom, using her imagination and make it seem "real" was a difficult task for her. Ophelia is alone, and banished for what she did to the moon colony, and knowing that Seraphina found out the truth of her home, made Queen Ophelia's heart sink. It was a pain she couldn't really place, but she did have a word for it; shame.

Using the power of her own Time Piece, Queen Ophelia fixed her outfit and hair before looking to Hat Kid and her friends again. "I suppose... I've kept you waiting long enough. Conductor, DJ Grooves, Snatcher, Mustache Girl... Hat Kid, come follow me to the spaceship."

As the queen turned on her heels, folding her hands together at her lap, she walked down the pristine marble floors with her heels creating an echo.

Mustache Girl followed suit, occasionally looking back over her shoulder at DJ Grooves who was trying to force the Conductor to come anywhere near her.

That left Snatcher and Hat Kid, standing near each other but not close enough for them to walk together like the owl and the Moon Penguin.

Snatcher grinned at his BFF before starting to follow the others. "C'mon kiddo, let's get back on your spaceship and finally finish that play-date you invited us to." 

Hat Kid put away her umbrella and started jogging to keep up with her friends and mother.

"Hey Snatcher? When we get on my spaceship, did you want more cookies and milk?" She joked, but Mustache Girl turned on her heels and started walking backwards before calling out, "You better have snacks for us on your ship! Otherwise I'm gonna be eating your hamburger relic!"

The Conductor's ears went downwards at the mention of the hamburger relic. That was the reason behind this entire adventure, save for his argument with everyone and in-putting units for distant planets.

He shook his head and laughed, "Listen you bloody peck-neck, I ain't gonna let anyone near that stupid relic as long as I live."

DJ Grooves burst with laughter and Hat Kid giggled under her breath, prompting an annoyed groan from Snatcher. "You know I can't digest that stuff, kid... But, yeah. I want your junk food."

As the group continued on their way to the reparations building, Hat Kid looked up to the crescent moon one last time with a big smile on her face, like the one she always had.

Mustache Girl was the first to open the glass door and hopped inside. "Ah, it feels great to be back in this dingy little spaceship. I'm going to go find some snacks!"

As she raced off, DJ Grooves looked over at Hat Kid, who was still staring up at the moon.

Queen Ophelia frowned and was about to walk over there, but the Conductor silently kept her from moving by pulling on the hem of her long dress and shaking his head."Give her time." He responded, before DJ Grooves came over and put his wing on her shoulder.

Snatcher was the second to head into the spaceship, then headed for Hat Kid's room to read. "Come on, darling, let's go home. Then you, the Conductor, and I can work on that movie."

He seemed to have lifted her spirits enough where she nodded and started asking him about what the plot-line will be about, but on their way inside, the Conductor abruptly exclaimed that there will be trains involved whether anyone liked it or not. And murder, which he especially requested to be a murder mystery with some intense action.

Queen Ophelia waved, but she didn't say anything. Instead, she merely watched as Hat Kid started up the spaceship with the owl and the Moon Penguin at her side, chatting with each other but the next blockbuster that would potentially unify owl and penguin kind. The ship rose into the air, the thrusters created noise and wind that made Ophelia's ears hurt and her hair fly away from her face, but as Hat Kid and Ophelia locked eyes again, they smiled, one that was not of trust, but of mutual understanding, then went on their way. Hat Kid's spaceship disappeared yet again into the stars, leaving Queen Ophelia alone on the liftoff deck with a solemn smile on her face.

Just then, two guards adorning golden armor ran outside to where she was. They saluted in respect, and she turned to meet their gaze. 

"Queen Ophelia, we've received word that Princess Seraphina and her friends are no longer in the castle. If we may ask, why did you let them leave this kingdom?"

Tilting her head to the side, she smiled and took a few steps forwards. "My daughter and her friends... are going on yet another adventure."


	9. Good Ending (Hostile)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hat Kid and her friends fight her overpowered mother, who had taken the Time Pieces for herself. Using the power of Time Pieces, she reveals a secret about the kingdom of Sehan.

The Conductor and DJ Grooves were wandering around the castle without any idea about where they were going, despite finding knives in the kitchen to protect themselves when the opportunity was needed. In the time it took for the entire day to pass, the castle had become empty, barren, and quite frankly, abandoned to the point where it was as if they had stumbled upon a ghost-town. The wallpaper which has been beautifully done, with its blues, greens, and reds, had faded into a horrible colorful mess that seemed impossible to destroy within a day with how nice the castle had been the day they arrived. There was something definitely wrong with this place, especially since it was rundown within a blink of an eye.

Maids, butlers, cooks, castle guards, even townspeople, all seemingly disappeared in less than a few hours as the the owl and the Moon Penguin discussed their next movie, ignorant to the troubles their friends were going through at this very moment. Furniture was strewn about in a horrible and messy manner as well, but it was like they haven't been touched in years, in some rooms that have been shut for a very long time. The golden armor belonging to the castle guard laid on the floor with the spear at its side, which prompted the Conductor and DJ Grooves to keep their defense up in case they came face to face with Queen Ophelia in her overpowered state. They know the power of the Time Pieces and what it does to your head, and with Hat Kid's mother it's very clear that she knows how to use the Time Pieces for her selfishness.

So for now, the two of them were as close as possible, with their arms touching, in case anything were to happen, and their weapons were drawn as if they were ready to fight any minute now. The Conductor peered over a corner to check and make sure the coast was clear, then nodded towards DJ Grooves to confirm that it was safe to come out. The two of them started running together down the moonlit hallway, despite the danger that could potentially lay ahead. Their main priority was getting Hat Kid and the others to go home, but once chaos ensued there was no real way of knowing where any of them were. Despite their differences, the Moon Penguin and the owl had no choice but to work together in the hopes of finding a way to go home, and end Queen Ophelia's reign of terror once and for all, and hopefully, fight her without actually killing her.

"W-What are we going to do about Hat Kid's spaceship, Conductor? The Time Pieces are inside of that vault of hers and if they get it open-" DJ Grooves tried to say while out of breath.

The Conductor sneered and replied back, "With all the pecking nonsense that's going down right this moment, I think Queen Ophelia already has the Time Pieces. I ain't seen another human in hours, so where else would they have gone?"

DJ Grooves thought for moment and agreed with the Conductor. It was odd that no one was around, despite the castle being densely populated just before the sun rose earlier that day. An entire kingdom of people wouldn't just disappear like that, not without some kind of magical force destroying them and leaving at least something behind, like ashes.

The Conductor heard a strange noise down another hallway, then taking action, stopped DJ Grooves in his tracks by shoving both himself and the penguin against the stripped wallpaper. DJ Grooves let out a grunt before quietly shutting himself up, then let the Conductor peer around the corner with his knife brandished.

The owl grimaced and, despite not having eyes, looked to his enemy turned friend. "Look, laddie, I'm sorry for getting us into this mess. Once we get off of this darned planet, we'll make a movie Dead Bird Studio will be proud of, ya hear me?"

Taken aback, DJ Grooves opens his beak as if to say something along the lines of encouragement, but the only sentence he could get out was, "Let's make our next blockbuster, darling."

Before brandishing his own knife and getting into a battle stance. If it was the queen rounding the corner, both the Conductor and DJ Grooves would go down fighting, in the hopes that Hat Kid, Snatcher, and Mustache Girl would all get to go home with a story to tell to the Express Owls and the Moon Penguins. How they could set aside their differences and finally work together to make things right, and in doing so, become friends. They got their weapons ready, then let out a battle cry as they rounded the corner, holding their weapons up high.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Mustache Girl closed the door to another disheveled and deserted room and sighed. "Another empty room. Where the heck are they?"

Mustache Girl had found a rock to use as a weapon, but other than that she had nothing but her wits and determination. Hat Kid followed close behind blonde haired girl with an umbrella at her shoulder without any intention of putting it away. At a time like this, she really missed her sticker-filled baseball bat. Then there was Snatcher who stayed behind them in the shadows with only his eyes providing them a light source, since the part of the castle they were in didn't have any windows, meaning no moonlight to guide their way through the twisting hallways. Their best bet of finding Queen Ophelia was in the throne room, but their main goal was finding the Conductor and DJ Grooves before doing anything else.

"Maybe they're looking for us too and they're in another part of the castle entirely." Snatcher suggested, before checking another room again.

Hat Kid spoke up in a low whisper, "Well, we can't slip up. Otherwise we'll all be lost. But, if we do end up going our separate ways, we meet in the throne room. Understood?"

Mustache Girl let out a groan and opened another door with an angry look on her face.

"If it wasn't for that stupid owl we wouldn't be in this mess. Why did you forgive him when he acted like such a jerk?" Letting her anger get the better of her, Mustache Girl slammed the door shut and started stomping down the hallway.

"Kid, shut it! Otherwise you'll get us caught-" Snatcher tried to say in an angry manner, but Mustache Girl quickly turned around and looked around the dark hallway. "Do you see anyone here? It's as if this place has been abandoned for years!"

Hat Kid got her umbrella ready in case anyone heard the door slam, but compared to her mother's powers, an umbrella was nothing but an object that could be broken into pieces.

"That still means we should be quiet." Hat Kid hissed, then opened another door in the hopes that they were huddled somewhere in the corner of the room, but found nothing, so she quietly closed it and continued walking.

"You know, maybe we should split-"

In almost an instant, the Conductor and DJ Grooves came around the corner with their weapons drawn and a yell escaping their throats.

Mustache Girl let out a scream and hid behind Snatcher, who in turn shoved her away with a taunting laugh. There was no light down this hallway, so when Snatcher looked towards them with his eyes glowing bright, they stopped dead in their tracks and drops their knives to the floor with shocked expressions.

Hat Kid grinned and exclaimed, "Grooves! Conductor! It's us!"

With her arms out, she wrapped them both in a big hug.

The Conductor and DJ Grooves breathed a sigh of relief and hugged back with grins on their faces.

"We can't tell you how happy we are to see you, lassie." Conductor sighed out, patting her on the back.

Grooves did the same, while saying, "Oh, darling, you nearly gave us a heart attack."

Mustache Girl and Snatcher watched from the shadows with impatient looks in their eyes, then looked to one another and rolled their eyes at the same time.

The Snatcher floated over and waved his arms as if he was signaling them to hurry to the throne room, "Okay! Wonderful, we found the owl and the penguin. Now, can we save the hugs for after the final battle, please? I'd like to get back to my forest before my minions wreck everything."

Picking up their knives, Mustache Girl hands them to the two birds and everyone gets ready. She turns to Hat Kid and nods, "Hat Kid, we're going to help you out with this fight, but... are YOU ready to do this?"

Without another thought, Hat Kid nods and says, "Heck yeah, I'm ready."

The team hurries to the throne room while following Hat Kid, and without saying another word.

They follow her since she knows where to go, but in actuality, she was more nervous than she let on. This fight determines the future of Sehan, her mother, and whether or not she gets to go home with all of her friends. If she fails, there's no going back now. She'll be stuck as Princess Seraphina, heir to the throne of Sehan.

As quickly as they started, they were met face to face with the giant metal doors of the throne room. Gold was painted on the pillars, much like the Mafia Boss' Headquarters, although it was more rundown and less shiny. Hat Kid could hear her spaceship's engine inside of the throne room, which most likely means the repairman crashed the ship into the castle.

"Ready, Hat Kid?" Snatcher asked, ready to cast magic so that the door would open. Hat Kid got her umbrella ready and nodded, then, using his power, made the door crash open. The five friends burst inside, and stared in awe over how similar the throne room looked to both Mustache Girl's and Mafia Boss' throne room looked like.

Reds and golds decorated the walls and ceilings, and a large crystal chandelier hung above the checkered floor in a vast display of elegance. Three thrones were at the far end of the room, with the moon providing light through the windows in order for everyone to see.

Indeed, Hat Kid's precious spaceship had been crashed through brick and stone and into the castle, where all of the Time Pieces had been emptied from their vault.

A slow clap resonated off the walls of the severely empty castle, leaving Hat Kid's usually determined nature turning to stomach-dropping regret.

Through the moonlight, she could see a woman, with one leg over the other, clapping sorrowfully over that fact that Hat Kid and her friends still had the nerve to try and fight her, despite being so powerful. Dozens of Time Pieces lay at her feet, lighting up the chairs in a sort of theatrical way. As for the queen, her clapping abruptly ended and she looked up from the floor.

Hat Kid could see it in her eyes, how much pain her mother was in at this very moment. She was glowing red, blue, yellow... as if all of the colors had rolled into one, coursing through her body in endless power and suffering.

"Seraphina," Her mother whispered, but if anything her voice was a low growl, "Why do you keep getting in my way?"

Her voice was shaky, almost like she was holding in more power than she could handle. Time Pieces weren't meant to be consumed by an individual, they were time itself. Mustache Girl winced as the queen slumped over as she tried to stand to her feet, her legs and arms seemingly having no control.

"Come, sit next to your mama. We can rule a kingdom together, and your friends can be long gone."

Hat Kid stood her ground, and began to use her umbrella's charge to unleash a beam of energy towards her mother's form. As if expecting the attack without even looking at them, the queen brushes the attack aside with one fell swoop of a wave. The energy beam broke apart a wall, and a breeze soon came in.

"You dare attack me?" The queen exclaimed, before teleporting off her chair and starting the battle.

Catching the Conductor off guard, she teleporting above him and ripped the knife from his hands, then pushed him to the floor with a grunt. Mustache Girl threw her rock and did a homing attack at the same time to get Queen Ophelia off of the Conductor while everyone else did their part. Hat Kid tried to send another beam of energy towards her mother using the umbrella, DJ Grooves tried to slash Ophelia with his knife, causing the barrier around her to bounce the knife off of it. This causes DJ Grooves to stumble back and force Hat Kid to send the beam away so that the light doesn't get deflected off the shield and back onto her. This causes yet another hole in the castle walls, leading to falling debris like rocks and bricks. Snatcher looks up to the ceiling and signals for Hat Kid to send a beam of energy again by pointing upwards, before whispering something into the Conductor's ear as he helped him up.

Mustache Girl, DJ Grooves, and the Conductor all did their best to force the queen under a part of the ceiling that was slowly falling apart, to which Hat Kid would use her beam attack to destroy the ceiling so that the barrier protecting her mother would be destroyed. This battle was only just beginning, and right now it seemed complicated already. The queen used the barrier to jump into the air, then brought it down upon snatcher, who had laughed as it merely phased through him.

"Try better than that!" Snatcher exclaimed, using this opportunity to create a powerful blast on the ground, much like the first phase of attacks when he fights Hat Kid back in the forest.

Queen Ophelia's eyes widen as the blast sends her flying against the wall, only for the barrier to stop her from breaking her spine and merely fall to the floor. She sends out a poorly done beam of energy, her long brown hair obscuring her vision and her dress torn from the knees down.

Mustache Girl nearly misses the one-hit attack, and Hat Kid reassures her by putting a hand on her back. As her mother charges another attack, Hat Kid charges her own using the umbrella, aiming for the ceiling above her mother.

The queen see's the charged beam of light, and braces for it by reinforcing the barrier surrounding her. The beam completely misses the queen, then shoots a hole directly through the ceiling, which prompts Ophelia to look up and laugh.

DJ Grooves silently cheers knowing she let her guard down enough to the point where she actually started laughing.

"Foolish child..." She breaths out, taking a step forward, "You missed-"

A pile of heavy bricks and rocks tumbled onto the barrier, ultimately breaking it in the process and burying Hat Kid's mother in the rubble. Hat Kid's eyes welled with tears after realizing just how painful it must have felt, getting pelted with the same materials which make up a castle.

The Conductor brandished his weapon and clenched his fist together, "Don't let yer guard's down, either of you."

There was a noticeable cut on his cheek from where her mother had thrown him to the ground. Everyone got ready in case she were to get up again, but Hat Kid couldn't help but feel like she should do something about it, and feel some sort of sympathy with how much it must hurt.

But, the Conductor was right in knowing the battle wasn't over. The rocks covering the queen swirled around and lifted up on their own, as if she still had fight left in her despite having the equivalent of a boulder dropped onto her head.

Although, her barrier had been reinforced, so with how powerful she was right now, it must have seemed like nothing more than a large object being thrown at her.

Using her powers to pelt the rocks towards Hat Kid and her friends, Hat Kid tried to doge her attacks by jumping midair and hopefully send out a beam attack, do a homing attack, or simply hit her with an umbrella.

"You realize that didn't hurt, don't you? I hope you understand that I've still got a fighting spirit left in me. After all, I'm not done yet..." Queen Ophelia looked up, her head was bleeding, with the entire left side of her hair stuck together in a red mess.

Her dress was in tatters now, and her eyes were locked on Hat Kid's form only, but the barrier was down.

The only thing Hat Kid had to do was dodge her attacks, much like any other boss fight, then attack at random intervals, then collect her Time Pieces and get home with her friends.

Snatcher and DJ Grooves attacked together with their knives drawn, but each and every time they tried to slash at Hat Kid's mother, she pushed them aside like they were nothing, especially since they barely reached her waist. Snatcher on the other hand was more than capable of taking care of the queen, such as using his beams again, to which she immediately dodged it.

Mustache Girl was always one step ahead, where if Ophelia were to have barely dodged a beam of energy, she would do a homing attack and send the queen flying back onto the floor.

Bruised, bloody, and exhausted beyond fighting spirit, Queen Ophelia took in a few shallow breaths that eventually turned into one long inhale. Hat Kid's companions froze mid-attack after noticing just how battered the queen had become and let her rest. Even after all the fighting, she didn't deserve to be attacked while she was down.

"This kingdom... you've seen what it's become, haven't you?" The queen gasped out, tired near the point of exhaustion where she could barely get up without her legs going out from under her, "Everyone is gone. This castle is practically abandoned, but... do you know why?" She coughed, then winced as she put a hand to her head.

As the queen brought her hand away, her palm had been painted red with the blood from the wound, and she winced involuntarily. Even with a concussion, and when her head pounded, she still tried to speak to her daughter and her friends.

The Conductor lowered his knife. "If you would stop fighting us we could listen to ye. We need those Time Pieces to get home."

The queen sighed and slumped onto the floor with her head lolling off to the side. "This kingdom... it's all fake. I used the power of the Time Pieces to create Sehan in my vision. A time before everyone left when they found out I had destroyed the moon colony, when they found out I had choked my own daughter."

Mustache Girl gasped and looked to Hat Kid in disbelief, who was still clutching her umbrella tightly. Hat Kid didn't want to stare at her mother, so she simply stared at the floor.

"When they found out what I had done, everyone left my kingdom and abandoned me; as a punishment for my crimes. But what they didn't know, was that I still had the power of the Time Pieces. Every single person you have met, every single piece of food you ate, the clothing, everything... it was all made by me. My people were nothing more than puppets, obeying every word I said."

DJ Grooves was still in shock after realizing that the moon was inhabited, and that his sweet darling was abused in such manner.

He tightened his grip on the knife and screamed, "So you've been lying to us this whole time? Then why keep us here? Why show us something that wasn't real-"

Queen Ophelia struggled to stand and silenced him by casting a beam of light at him, nearly throwing him to the wall.

The Conductor opened his mouth, "Grooves! You no good bloody peck-neck! We don't care about your stupid sob story, we just want to go home!"

Ophelia ignored him and walked over to Hat Kid, before squatting down and sighing. She knew she couldn't win with how much pain she was in, but moreover, she didn't want to submit her daughter to so much pain.

"Seraphina, you must understand, this kingdom was created by me. Each and every resident was created by the power I have from a Time Piece. I don't wish to fight you... You can have your Time Pieces back. As long as you leave with your friends... and with your Time Pieces."

Hat Kid couldn't help but be confused, where just a minute ago DJ Grooves was thrown against the wall purely for speaking out of line.

Offering Hat Kid her hand, Queen Ophelia asked, "Please sweetheart, take my hand, and I'll make sure that everything goes back to the way it was. You're welcome to come here anytime you like with anyone of your friends, but no one will remember what happened here today. I can make it so."

Staring down at her mother's hand, Hat Kid asked, "Promise? You'll let us come here whenever we want?"

The queen looked to Hat Kid's friends, who had put on the meanest faces they could make, thinking this was simply a trap.

The queen sighed and nodded. "It's a promise. Your Time Pieces, your spaceship, your memories... everything will go back to the way it should be. It will all be changed. Down to even the simplest of details."

Mustache Girl crossed her arms, then replied, "Well, it's better than being scarred for seeing a warship crash onto a pile of trees."

DJ Grooves limped over with the Conductor at his side, but their knives were discarded, save for the Conductor's sharpened one.

Snatcher crossed his long arms and huffed, "Yeah, well, I don't like this idea. It's almost as if everything we've done today was for nothing. An entire adventure down the drainpipe. But I guess that all depends on Hat Kid."

Still holding out her hand, her mother asks, "Would you like to change the past and bring the kingdom back to its former glory?"

{Good Ending}

With a sneer on her face, Hat Kid narrowed her eyes at her mother and shook her head. "No."

On impulse, Queen Ophelia reached her hand out towards her daughter for comfort, but then she hesitated, with her eyebrows furrowed in disbelief and betrayal.

Ophelia's injured fingers rubbed themselves against the palm of her hand as she whispered, "S-Seraphina?"

Taking a few steps back, Hat Kid replies, "You caused this to happen. You fabricated an entire kingdom just so you could fill that empty hole in your heart with-" Hat Kid suddenly started coughing, which usually happened whenever she spoke for long periods of time. She cleared her throat and started speaking again, "With... with memories of people that no longer live here. If you missed me so much, like you've been claiming, why didn't you just make a carbon-copy of me? Or of... father?"

Queen Ophelia sighed and broke eye contact with her daughter, most likely hiding her emotional turmoil when it came to such a touchy subject.

"A hallucination can't replace my family, my sweet girl. You had every right to leave this kingdom, you know? Maybe it was for best. Maybe... I should allow you to keep the Time Pieces for yourself, otherwise I'll end up destroying everything else I know and love." The queen struggled to find footing on the crumbling throne room floor, and winced, feeling the pulsating energy of the Time Piece charging itself for the fight ahead.

For as long as Queen Ophelia could remember, this was her home. Her subjects constantly surrounded her with love and affection, all while giving their condolences for Princess Seraphina's departure.

She always sent out "search parties" for her daughter, but they weren't real people. It was nothing more than Queen Ophelia in her sick, twisted fantasy, looking for her daughter in the stars. There was nothing here for the last two residents of this continent. What was a queen and her princess without subjects to rule with?

"Can you quit making me feel... sorry for you?" Hat Kid demanded, gripping her umbrella tighter, almost as if she had every intention to use it. "You caused this! You caused all of this!" She waved her arms around as if to clarify her statement.

"I don't want you to accept my apology. All I want... is for you to see that I regret my mistakes." The queen mumbled, but she knew no one could hear it.

Her spaceship's lights had been blinking above her, almost as if the ship had been damaged, and yet there were no broken wood to be seen. As Hat Kid and her mother continued arguing with each other, rather than fight, Mustache Girl took it upon herself to slowly make her way to the spaceship.

Mustache Girl gestured with her hands to the spaceship crashed through the building to the Conductor and DJ Grooves. It seemed to still be in good condition up close, albeit a bit dented and scratched up.

"Hat Kid! If you're going to get your Time Pieces back do it n-"

Queen Ophelia let out the beam of light through her hands towards Mustache Girl, which forced her against the already crumbling castle wall and pinning her to it.

The blonde haired girl let out a painful scream as an electrifying jolt continued coursing through her small body, prompting tears to form in her eyes. The Conductor and DJ Grooves made a break for Hat Kid's spaceship in an attempt to get it up and running for an escape, and to get the Time Pieces back and seal up the vault for good.

Snatcher came to her aid by attempting to rip her out of whatever was holding her against the wall, but in his ghostly form he couldn't get a good grip on her.

"Use the umbrella, kid!" Snatcher demanded, while continually trying to find a way to save Mustache Girl.

Hat Kid knew what she had to do and gripped the handle of her precious umbrella a little tighter. She watched as Mustache Girl's eyes clenched shut, her arms were shaking, and her legs were trying their best to kick their way out. It reminded Hat Kid of that day, when she had lost her ability to speak normally. How pleading did her no good, and her mother did what she wanted. Hurting her own daughter was one thing, but hurting her friends was another. A line that should never be crossed, ever.

With a determined look on her face, she got in the way of the hyperbeam and charged her umbrella, before forcing the two beams to meet and intersect with one another, ultimately causing white puffs of smoke to rise in the air as they cancelled each other out. Mustache Girl was no longer pinned to the wall, but as she fell forwards, she was met with Snatcher's arms and they were teleported into the spaceship, which was currently being turned on by DJ Grooves since he knew how to work alien technology better than the Conductor could.

Rumbi worriedly came over to Mustache Girl's shaky form and nudged her a bit while making beeping noises. Although injured and dazed, Mustache Girl still smiled and rubbed the top of the little robots head in gratitude. Meanwhile, Snatcher returned to the fight, where Hat Kid was sending out charged beams of energy at her mother, while also completing homing attacks whenever she dodged a wave of attacks by her mother.

"Hat Kid! Take some pons!" Snatcher exclaimed.

Four hearts appeared out of thin air and he threw them her direction, to which she caught them midair and smiled towards him as she landed with a hop.

Queen Ophelia watched as the spaceship slowly found its way out of the castle wall and scraped against rock and metal.

Hat Kid knew she was distracted, and used this to her advantage. Doing a homing attack, Queen Ophelia couldn't dodge it in time and lost the battle.

Her power ran out, the Time Piece she had absorbed couldn't take anymore of her abuse.

The castle around them continued to crumble, and the queen fell forwards onto the floor, with her crown flinging off her head and forcing the crystals to fly out.

Victorious, Hat Kid walked over to her mother with her umbrella on her shoulder and a nonchalant smile on her face.

Snatcher watched from afar to make sure nothing bad would happen to the kid, but he continually looked back at the spaceship to make sure DJ Grooves did in fact know how to fly, and he wasn't faking it.

As Hat Kid got closer to her mother, the queen clenched her teeth together and looked down, not wanting to meet her gaze. After everything they've been through, her daughter had the nerve to bask in the moment of seeing her mother so powerless, just as she was a very long time ago.

Against the queen's wishes, Queen Ophelia felt Hat Kid raise her chin using the end of the umbrella and she smiled cutely, almost like she had every intention of mimicking her mother when they first arrived on Sehan. The queen shook her head, forcing the umbrella away with a sneer, and tried everything in her power to avert her gaze.

Hat Kid did it again.

With a hand on her hip, Hat Kid once again put the umbrella under her mother's chin to make their eyes lock, and tilted her head to the side.

"We are not coming back." She stated plainly, before whisking her umbrella to the side and following Snatcher to her slowly rising spaceship. Queen Ophelia choked in a sob as she tried to lift herself up.

The Snatcher could teleport them inside the spaceship, so there was no reason to worry.

Queen Ophelia used her arms to lift herself up, however she didn't try hard to fight back considering she knew for a fact that she lost. Nothing would go back to normal. She would be in an ugly and abandoned kingdom with no way to leave.

"Seraphina," Ophelia gasped out, her blue eyes narrowing.

Hat Kid looked back and tilted her head to the side, but she noticed that Snatcher had tried to shield her using his ghostly arm.

"You are banished from Sehan for the rest of your pathetic life." Ophelia spat out, causing the Snatcher to scowl. He felt Hat Kid's body tense up from behind his arm.

Hat Kid was shaking in fear.

"And... your title of princess has been revoked. You are no longer welcome here, and if I see you come back, on purpose or on accident, I will take it upon myself to make sure that you suffer the consequences of your actions."

Snatcher had enough of her threats.

He teleported right in front of the queen, where Hat Kid was completely blocked from view, and his oddly calm smile was the only thing keeping her from attacking him from such a distance.

His eyes and mouth ominously glowed in the darkness, lighting up the queen's terrified expression in a brilliant yellow.

Snatcher starts, "Now you listen here, I am the one who threatens the kid. If you lay a finger on her again, better yet, if you even speak to her again, I will make sure that your head pops off just like the other fools who have crossed my path. You won't have a kingdom to call home anymore. Just be lucky I'm nice enough to leave you on this miserable hunk of rock and not kill you right here for hurting Hat Kid the way you did. And another thing," Snatcher leaned in closer, still sporting that smile, "Hat Kid is the only thing keeping me from getting rid of you myself."

Hat Kid held her umbrella tighter as Snatcher finished his threats, but in a way she felt grateful. Snatcher would have killed her right then and there, while taking her soul in the process. But because of her, he didn't. It probably took every fiber in his being not to attack her right at this very moment.

Before Queen Ophelia could reply, the Snatcher picked Hat Kid up in his arms and watched her mother crawl towards them, the blood from her head wound ever present. "No, wait, Seraphina-"

"We are not coming back." Snatcher replied, and teleported her onto the ship, where DJ Grooves offered her a chair as she hopped out of his arms.

"The controls are all yours, darling." DJ Grooves said. 

The Conductor was taking care of Mustache Girl on some pillows while Rumbi watched over them.

"Snatch-"

"You don't have to thank me, kiddo." As Hat Kid looks up at Snatcher, the ghost puts on a fake frown and teleports into her bedroom to get some reading done.

As Hat Kid takes one last look at the broken and eroding castle that she called home for so many years, she smiled and got into the chair.

Pressing a bunch of buttons, before letting out an excited, "Boop!" She gripped the lever and pulled it downwards. "Hang on, everyone!"

The spaceship's thrusters rev to life, and the ship is blasted into the stars once more, and Hat Kid readies herself for another adventure.

{THE END}


	10. Epilogue: A Story for the Ages

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hat Kid is yet again a movie star, but Snatcher and Mustache Girl ask Hat Kid if she's really okay after Queen Ophelia betrayed her own daughter. The Empress and the walrus captain ask her where she's been, to which Hat Kid tell them her story.

Hat Kid brushed her bangs to the side and narrowed her blue eyes as a Moon Penguin pointed a realistic, paper-mache laser gun to her head. Some Express Owls and C.A.W. Agents stood behind her, with their knives and guns drawn as well to protect her. Her umbrella had been broken apart a very long time ago earlier in another scene.

"So, it's finally come down to this." The Moon Penguin stated, as more of their goons showed up.

Behind their sunglasses, their eyes were narrowed as well, however their beaks were pursed together to relish the thought of the main character face to face with death itself.

The C.A.W. Agent stood in front of Hat Kid, with his movements portraying that of a pigeon. He got up close and personal with the penguin, mostly to scare him into submission.

"Coward, you think you can just get rid of our leader so easily?" Encircling the group now, the Moon Penguin lowers his fake gun and shrugs.

"Here's the deal. Your leader made off with that golden necklace. The one that belonged to us in the first place." The Express Owls shielded Hat Kid from the ever-closer Moon Penguins, who in turn, watched Hat Kid grasp the golden chain with a diamond attached to it.

For the movie's sake, it was a fake. If anything, it was nothing more than bulky string painted gold.

An Express Owl gained the courage to step up. "You blew up our base! You betrayed us, and we had every right to take one of your belongings. It's just a necklace, what's so important about it?"

The Moon Penguin brought back up his gun, only he didn't point it at Hat Kid this time, only the Express Owl. "That necklace belonged to my dead wife! I have every right to steal it back from you!"

From behind the camera, the Conductor and DJ Grooves both watched the scene unfold.

This was the big grand finale, in which Dead Bird Studio will gain ratings the likes of which no other movie studio will ever see.

The Conductor gripped the sides of his chair and nodded towards DJ Grooves, who in turn, used the camera to zoom in on Hat Kid's necklace.

"That's... all?" The brunette asked, before unclasping it and inspecting it.

It glittered in the artificial lights above her in the movie set, but in the eyes of a moviegoer, this was a stand-off in a train station.

"She was murdered because of you, you stupid hat-brat! You launched the mission on our base, got her killed... That's why I blew up your own base. I taught you a lesson, kid." The gun met her square in the head again, but Hat Kid didn't flinch.

Instead, she simply clenched her fist, and held out the necklace with a smile. "Then take it. It's yours."

The Moon Penguin was shocked at first, albeit grateful that the gang leader was willing to put aside their differences and give back what they stole.

"B-But boss," The Express Owl stammered, before putting a wing on her shoulder, "Our friends died when they blew up our base. Stealing the necklace was supposed to be payback."

Hat Kid shook her head and pushed through her crowd of bodyguards towards the Moon Penguin, who had lowered his gun. He was awestruck, nonetheless. Winking, she dangled the necklace in front of him.

Undoing the clasp, she put the necklace on for him as his bodyguards watched on.

Smiling, she was about to pull away, when Hat Kid followed the script and plunged a rubber knife into the Moon Penguins' back.

Even though it wasn't the best fake-death in movie history, all he needed to do was made a few painful grunts and fall face-first onto the floor. Fake blood spilled out of his "wound", although it just looked like a ketchup bottle exploded under his clothes. Which in hindsight wasn't the best comparison for a murder, not that Hat Kid thought about it.

Chaos ensued on the set, to which Hat Kid narrowly escaped the pellets being shot at her.

The Express Owls and and the C.A.W. Agents immediately rushed into action and attacked the Moon Penguins in turn.

The hoots of Express Owls rang out as they felt the pellet hit them, then tried their best to fake their death. However Hat Kid fled the scene, which was on the script, and left her C.A.W. Agents and Express Owls to fend for themselves. It wasn't a very big twist, but Hat Kid didn't care about the necklace, or the Moon Penguins, nor her own gang.

Her character just wanted to be free of the horrors of warfare, and this was the perfect time to do so.

After all, the shootout allowed her to flee like a coward, leaving her own gang to fend for themselves. It was cowardly, and quite frankly shock value, but if this was the best twist ending DJ Grooves and the Conductor could come up with, Hat Kid was glad they managed to come up with an ending at all for the movie they made together.

The music rang out as she walked into the sunset, now alone and ready to start life anew. No Express Owls, no C.A.W. Agents, and more importantly, no Moon Penguins. The main character, who was appropriately named Lil' Hat Girl, was on her own now, and she was more than happy to live as she was now; free.

The Conductor zoomed in using the camera, and as if on cue, Hat Kid turned around and narrowed her eyes towards the sky, which abruptly ended the movie. 

"And... cut! Ohohoho, the movie is ready!" The Conductor exclaimed, hopping off his chair and running towards Hat Kid.

He wasn't one to show affection, but when the opportunity presented itself he gave Hat Kid a pat on the back to congratulate her on the new movie.

DJ Grooves took the large and heavy camera off of the tripod and handed it to an editor to get the movie ready.

"Darling, you and your acting were perfect! Oh, and you guys were great too!" DJ Grooves complimented the birds as well, who were struggling to get up in the pool of slippery red liquid after their "shootout".

Hat Kid grinned and blushed slightly at her praise, but as the two birds reviewed the footage on the camera, Hat Kid figured that it would be a better idea to simply call it a day and visit Snatcher and Mustache Girl to tell them about the movie finally being finished. It's been quite a long time she's visited The Captain and his seals on his brand-new ship, as well as The Empress from Nyakuza Metro.

"Um, guys?" Hat Kid tried to get their attention as they chatted by poking them with the end of her umbrella.

They turned around to see what she needed, but editing this movie was going to take awhile, so their hands were still on the computer that housed the entire movie inside of it. "I'm heading off!"

The Conductor nods and turns back around. "Alright, lassie. Stay safe, you hear?"

To which the hatted girl laughs and nods, before turning to DJ Grooves who had somewhat of a sad smile on his face. "We mean it, darling. Stay safe, and try to stay out of mischief."

Brushing them off like she always does, Hat Kid laughs and gathers her things to take back onto the spaceship.

It's been a few months since the fight with her mother and discovering what she had done to Sehan, but she managed to suppress it from becoming a movie star for DJ Grooves and the Conductor.

Now that the movie was over, she realized that she had nothing interesting to do anymore. Granted, there was the ability to visit Snatcher or Mustache Girl whenever she wanted, and even the Captain and the Empress in their respective worlds.

Of course Hat Kid didn't want to admit it, but she's been finding it hard to enjoy herself after their latest adventure.

Since everyone was busier than her, she took it upon herself to leave Dead Bird Studio on her own. She waved towards the C.A.W. Agents, the Express Owls, and the Moon Penguins, to which they smiled and left to get cleaned up.

Once she got her things all packed up, the little hatted girl called for her spaceship to pick her up and take her to Mafia Town in order to find Mustache Girl.

~~~~~~

Mafia Town was as bright and beautiful as ever, save for the Mafia themselves when they try to punch random citizens or act rude in general.

Mustache Girl stayed in hiding as usual, so when Hat Kid fell from the sky out of her spaceship and onto the ground below, the first thing she did was go to Mustache Girl's secret hide-out on top of the tower, where she was seen eating a stolen sandwich from a restaurant in Mafia Town.

A seagull was perched beside her, occasionally squawking at her for a piece of the sandwich. She swatted her hand to scare him off, but the seagull tried to bite her.

"Would you stop trying to bite me, you stupid bird?" Mustache Girl exclaimed, just as Hat Kid jumped onto the yellow roof of the building.

Laughing, Hat Kid yelled for her acquaintance by putting her hands around her mouth. "Hey!"

Managing to gain Mustache's Girl's attention, the blonde haired girl turned around and grinned before heading towards the edge. "Hat Kid, hey! Press that button and I'll give you a lift!"

The two little girls grinned towards each other and Hat Kid did as she was told.

Hopping onto the button, the crane moved and lowered a platform for Hat Kid to jump on in order for her to reach Mustache Girl.

As Mustache Girl watched Hat Kid attempt to jump onto the tower, the seagull tried its best to get closer to her sandwich in an attempt to steal a bite. With her back turned, the seagull had no other choice but to move in quietly, but even then Mustache Girl wrapped her arms around Hat Kid and gave her a tight squeeze, leaving the seagull without a bite to eat. It then flew off and left the two girls in peace.

"So, Hat Kid, how's that movie of yours going with DJ Grooves and the Conductor? Do you think it'll be a hit?" Mustache Girl asked, before plopping back down onto the floor to eat.

Hat Kid hopped up onto the railing of the tower and sat there, while also being mindful of the drop below. Although she had the Hover badge, she still wanted to make sure that she accidentally didn't fall to the hard ground below.

"Well," Hat Kid shrugged, while looking out at the ocean, "I'm not entirely sure, really. They don't really have cinemas on their planet... and the budget for movies gets really pricey. In my opinion, they just like making movies for an adoring public."

A sudden breeze passed through the tower, and Mustache Girl abruptly stopped eating. "Wow, Hat Kid. That's the most words I've ever heard coming out of you for a long time... Well, hey! You're going to be a movie star again, right?"

Although her hair flew into her face due to the wind, the blonde haired girl could tell something was definitely off about her friend. Her eyebrows were furrowed and her mouth was curled into a frown, almost like she had something on her mind, and the movie ending wasn't the reason why she looked to worried and sad.

"...Hat Kid? Is something wrong?" Mustache Girl got up and dropped her sandwich to the floor to walk over to her friend.

Although wasteful, her friend mattered more than food right now, even if it did almost get her in trouble with the mafia goons. Although she tried to hide it with her hat, the brunette blinked away the tears from her eyes and looked out towards the horizon. The sun was beginning to set on Mafia Town, and she realized that it was golden hour.

"Mustache Girl, am I..." She hiccuped and scrunched her shoulders together, then buried her face in her hands, "Am I a good person?"

Another sudden breeze whipped through the tower, causing their capes and hair to gain a mind of their own and fly about. Mustache Girl had no idea what to say, and quite frankly, had no idea what to do. She wanted to tell her that yes, Hat Kid was a good person. But another half wanted to say that she wasn't good or bad, and that she was just herself. Instead, all she could do was wrap her arms around Hat Kid and rub her on the back while making shushing sounds to calm her down.

Mustache Girl sighed, "I'm going to be honest with you. After that whole... fight with your mother, I've been feeling out of sorts too. Like, I feel like we did the right thing discovering the truth, but I also feel like we just left a whole planet for dead. So, all I'm going to say is, you are you. You're not a good guy, but you're also not a bad guy like the mafia, so just keep being yourself and everything will be fine."

Hat Kid wiped away her tears and nodded towards Mustache Girl, who in turn moved some of her bangs out of her eyes. "You need to cut your hair.",p>

The two of them chuckled a little.

The sun had set fairly quickly on Mafia Town, so to enjoy the night together, Mustache Girl and Hat Kid raced around town and played tricks on the mafia to help them feel better.

They played in the cold ocean water and played catch with beach balls, but once the marketplace set off the fireworks, the two of them watched from the top of a building and taunted any goon that happened to be walking by. It helped her feel better, especially being able to hang out with her buddy that had recently became her enemy. But good things couldn't last forever, so Hat Kid waved Mustache Girl goodbye and left back to her spaceship in the sky.

~~~~~~

As Hat Kid waved at Rumbi before exciting the kitchen where the telescope is, she glanced towards the door with the tree on it, and realized that Snatcher was most likely sitting where he always does in her room. Cooking Cat was in her kitchen making human food, and Hat Kid took it gratefully. After thanking Cooking Cat for the dinner, she carries the plate towards her bedroom and runs through the tunnel and into the room itself. Her suspicions were correct. The giant shadow/ghost was sitting there surrounded by his candles with a book in hand, titled How to Kill Kids.

"Hello, BFF!" She exclaimed, although not with her usual spunk.

She placed her plate of food on the table near the wall where the blueprint of her ship was located.

Snatcher looked up from his book and tried to act uninterested. "Hey, kid. Not dead yet, I see? You haven't even done any contracts for awhile, is that movie of yours finally over?"

She sat in the chair and spun around with her plate in hand. It wasn't a messy dish, being that it was just broccoli and fish on a plate.

Hat Kid stabbed a piece of broccoli with her fork and jammed it into her mouth. "Mhm! We just finished it today!"

Snatcher couldn't exactly make out that sentence, so all he could reply was, "Don't talk with your mouth full, young lady. And where were you?"

His eyes trained themselves on the book again once Hat Kid chewed and swallowed the piece of broccoli. For some odd reason, the little hatted girl always liked vegetables, so she wanted to eat the broccoli before the fish.

"Sorry, heh. I was with Mustache Girl for the remainder of the evening. We talked about stuff." She didn't want to bring up her indiscretions, and most importantly, when she asked Mustache Girl if she was a good person.

Hat Kid was glad Snatcher didn't press her further, so all she did was sit at her desk and continue eating while Snatcher read to himself.

She used her fork to cut off a bit of the cooked fish and watched the steam rise from it. It was coated in creamy mustard sauce that gave it a bit of a kick, but Cooking Cat definitely knew how to cook. It was oddly similar to the food given to her in her castle, with how nice everything was laid out on the plate. She took a sip out of her multi-colored cup left on the table, only to discover it was empty when she inhaled dusty air instead of a refreshing liquid.

Sighing, she put her plate on the workbench and hopped off the chair with her empty cup in hand. Snatcher noticed her movement and furrowed his "eyebrows" together.

"Where are you going with that cup, kiddo?" She stops in her tracks, only for the door to rise up while she stood in the doorway. She put on a smile before started to walk away again with a wave of her hand. "Getting a drink!"

Snatcher didn't really know why he asked where she was going, after all he was supposed to give her impossible-to-complete contracts that leave her dying over and over again. Instead, after the adventure on Sehan, and when he threatened Queen Ophelia, he's been a bit more supportive of the little hat girl.

Every once in awhile when she got back from a different world, she would walk into her bedroom for some much needed rest, and as if on cue, he would wave to her nonchalantly and grumble, "Hey, kiddo."

It wasn't like he particularly hated her, in fact he cared more about her than his minions and that was saying a lot.

Sure, he stole mail and gave it to them to pretend people cared about his minions, but they weren't exactly his favorite to hang around with.

They mostly resided in his forest and took orders, while also steering clear of Vanessa's manor if they could help it.

With Hat Kid, he couldn't find any time to himself with how often she tried to bother him. Aside from her visits in the Subcon Forest to annoying him on her spaceship, she always figured out ways to make him feel like he was her guardian of sorts. Although only a little girl, she can take care of herself just fine. Cooking Cat is also like her guardian as well, especially when cooking her meals before every adventure, and packing her a few snacks so she never goes hungry, but Snatcher tries his best to be alone. He usually ignores Cooking Cat, and she does the same to him.

"I'm back!" Hat Kid singsonged, before carefully putting her drink back onto the workbench.

Snatcher only grunted to reply, and he realized that he hadn't turned the page during the entire time he'd been thinking. He shook his head to ease his thoughts, and his puffy purple fur-collar swayed as he moved before turning the page. He buried his face into the book again, while being mindful of Hat Kid's gaze.

She was kicking her feet under the chair as she took another bite of the cooling fish, then chewed as she looked up at Snatcher again.

"Hey, Snatch-" She started, before realizing she was talking with her mouth full again. She promptly swallowed and laughed to herself, "Hey, Snatcher?"

He sighs with his usual pumpkin-like smile. "Yes, kiddo?"

"Um... Mustache Girl and I already talked about this, and don't get mad, but..." She cut off her sentence there, almost like she was making sure Snatcher was giving her his full attention. "Did I do the right thing? Fighting and leaving my mother back on Sehan all alone? It's been a few months now, but I can't help but feel bad for it."

Snatcher, for once, had closed his book and set it aside. He made sure to place it somewhere where a candle wasn't nearby, and with a straight answer, replied, "Yes, you did the right thing. I don't usually try to bring your feelings up, Hat Kid, but what your mother did was wrong. I'm going to give you some advice, and I'm only going to say this once, so you keep this in your heart, you hear me? Don't go forgetting it a day later."

Hat Kid nodded, and the Snatcher continued.

"If someone wrongs you, then on instinct, you instantly feel like it's your fault, right? Like, maybe it was something you did that made them get mad at you, or maybe they didn't like you in the first place. Frankly, it doesn't matter what the reason is. With you and your mother... and with Vanessa and I, we were both wronged by them. We thought it was something we did, and we tried our hardest to forgive and forget as best as we could. But sometimes, instead of forgiving someone who hurt you... way more than you hurt them, you have to tell yourself that you matter more. So to put it simply, Seraphina, fighting your mother and shunning her like that was the right thing to do. Your home is here, in a spaceship, going on adventures with friends and joining cat gangs, sinking ships belonging to a walrus... and not being a lousy princess. Just be you, and people will like you better that way. I know I do..."

He mumbled that last part, yet despite his best efforts Hat Kid managed to hear it.

Smiling, she jumped off her chair and jogged over to the Snatcher to give him a hug, to which he groaned and gave her a pat on the back.

"Ugh, okay, okay, I get it. We're BFF's, now let go of me before I crush you to death." Despite his wishes, Hat Kid only squeezed harder.

~~~~~~

"Oh, hey, pup. How have you been lately?" The Captain asked, who was standing at the docking area of his new ship. Painted on the side of the boat was S.S. Literally Cannot Sink 2, with the word "Literally" being underlined, only twice now.

Hat Kid saluted the captain and straightened her back, to which he brushed her off and continued to smoke not one, but two cigarettes with his usual grumpy face.

More passengers were coming onto the ship, but a few of them whispered to each other that Hat Kid sunk the ship last time.

The two seals at his side stayed wary of Hat Kid, especially since the last time she was on a ship she accidentally made it head straight for an iceberg and it sunk.

"I've been on an adventure, captain! I would like to tell you about it before you get on your ship!"

The captain checked his radio and heard the seals on the other side, but he ignored them.

"Since we're not ready to sail yet, and since you're not allowed to get on my ships anymore, I guess you and I can hold a little chat before we set sail."

Raising her arms in excitement, Hat Kid jumped onto a pile of stacked suitcases and sat down so that she was eye-level with the captain.

As the passengers saluted the captain, Hat Kid grinned and waved them off before stating, "Have a fun trip!" or "Bon Voyage!" as the captain watched on with a tilt of his cap.

"You gonna keep welcoming people or are you going to tell your story, pup?" He whispered as a C.A.W. Agent stepped aboard. Hat Kid put her hand to her hat as if to think and chuckled nervously.

"Well, it's kind've a long story, so I'll summarize it. The Conductor, DJ Grooves, Mustache Girl, Snatcher, and I were all sent to Sehan on my spaceship by accident. Then, they found out my real name and the fact that I'm a princess, and my mother isn't the nicest person in the world. We fought and stuff... I don't want to go into too much detail. Oh, but, I'm in a movie coming out soon!"

The captain almost choked on a puff of smoke and he took both cigarettes out of his mouth. "Y-You're a princess? Why didn't you tell me that before? Aw, pup... I mean..."

Hat Kid shook her head and told him it was alright. A few passengers noticed his semi-shocked expression but thought nothing of it. If anything, they thought she was sneaking aboard.

The seals on the floor nudged the captain with their flippers, and he noticed that almost everyone got on the ship by now. Since Hat Kid sunk the last one, she couldn't go on vacation this time.

Sighing, he exclaimed, "The boat's leaving in five minutes! Passengers who haven't boarded the ship will be left behind and any leftover baggage will be discarded!"

Hat Kid promptly covered her ears from how loudly he yelled, but once he coughed loudly, she put her hands down and looked back towards the ship. The S.S. Literally Cannot Sink 2 was a perfect replica of the original.

The seals at the control panels set off the horn on the cruise ship, which was loud enough to make Hat Kid jump and cover her ears. "Ahh, it's too loud, captain!"

In turn, the walrus let out a hardy laugh and pat her on the back before heading up the ramp with the two seals at his side.

"Gwoodbye, miss!" A seal smiled, before the other turned as well and waved.

The little hatted brunette jumped off the suitcases as a forklift came over to life the suitcases and took them to the loading dock. Though their meeting was short, Hat Kid was glad she got to meet the Captain again.

But now, there was one person left. The Empress from Nyakuza Metro, who runs an entire gang and tried to kill Hat Kid for taking her Time Pieces back. She shivered at the thought, and hoped there was no ill will between the two. There was only one way to find out.

~~~~~~

"Well, well, well. Look what the cat dragged in..." The Empress purred from behind her counter at Le Félin, before slicking her hair back using her clawed paw.

Hat Kid was dressed in her Nyakuza Metro Varsity Jacket, her hat flair, and the mask with the cat mouth and whiskers in order to gain some sort of good impression. But of course, knowing a crime lord, The Empress wasn't too keen on having one of her old investments come crawling back after losing her trust.

"Hello! I went on an adventure and was acting in a movie these past couple of months-"

"What makes you think you can just come waltzing in here after our little disagreement?" The Empress interrupted Hat Kid, making the brunette stop in her tracks.

Her claws were sharpened more than usual, so maybe this was a bad idea.

After all, their elevator conversation had ended with "We'll meet again, brat!" But that was really it. Just a threat, and even when Hat Kid returned to Le Félin, The Empress stated that the cat cops were on the prowl for wrongdoers, so the Empress couldn't attack Hat Kid even if she wanted to.

Hat Kid rubbed her arm and looked off to the side as if expecting the Empress to care.

She couldn't be too cold-hearted, after all, Hat Kid considered her a better person than Queen Ophelia would ever dream of being.

Taking off her cat-mask, Hat Kid sighed and asked, "Can I talk to you, heart-to-heart? It's really important."

The Empress leaned over the counter with her paw on her cheek. Usually when someone was distraught, especially little kids, she at least tried to listen.

Sighing, she nodded with a small, yet visible smile. "Let's talk over some lunch, shall we? My treat, Hat Kid." At the kind gesture, Hat Kid couldn't help but smile back.

The two of them stood side by side as they walked through the winding stations of Nyakuza Metro. It was honestly a surprise to Hat Kid that the Empress knew her way around, but she had eyes watching everything and everyone, so she could most likely ask directions via her gang members.

"So, little one," the Empress started, before staring down at Hat Kid with a smile, "Do you have any dietary restrictions? Or a preference for foods you like?"

Hat Kid looked around the the wide variety of restaurants. The subway cats were running to-and-fro above them on the disappearing and re-appearing tracks that Hat Kid could still never figure out.

"We're not going to a vendor?" She asked guiltily, almost like Hat Kid wanted the Empress to save money rather than spend it.

The Empress made a face and her ears moved back as the two of them got in line. "Restaurants are healthier in my opinion. A vendor just throws food onto a grill or cooker and considers it ready to eat. Now, go on. Pick out something you like and then the two of us can got sit somewhere and eat."

Hat Kid was almost excited knowing the Empress was being as kind as she was right now. As much as the brunette hated to admit it, there were very few positive female figures in her life. Bow Kid was more like an awkward older cousin, but not like a maternal figure like the Empress or Cooking Cat.

The line eventually grew shorter and shorter, and Hat Kid and the Empress were next up to order. The cat with a mask noticed his boss and instantly grew weary, but once he saw the little girl he realized she wasn't here for confrontation.

"H-Hello, what would you like to order today?" He stumbled, before showing them the menus above him on a flat-screen monitor.

The Empress ordered first after giving it some thought, while occasionally showing Hat Kid the types of food that she would enjoy.

"I'll have some brewed tea and Soup Dumplings, with a bit of rice. And put her order on my card as well." She slipped him a platinum credit card and he nodded.

"And you, little girl? What would you like?" She looked up at the menu and her eyes seemingly lit up.

Without really meaning to, she nudged the Empress and pointed to what she wanted like a shy child would do with their mother. The Empress blushed slightly and nodded. "The kid wants Shoyu Ramen with tea as well. Put the tea on ice for her."

Marking down the orders, the cat gives it to the kitchen and tells them their order will be ready *very* shortly, since she's not only his boss, but she's also a regular at the restaurant so she gets special treatment.

The two of them sit at a table and Hat Kid taps her legs while looking around excitedly.

This was a different atmosphere, one that she enjoyed more than formal dining with her mother. "So, Hat Kid, what have you been doing these past few months? Just an FYI, you can't join my gang again. Losing my trust instantly boots you out. Now, onto your story."

The brunette nodded, and she watched as the Empress rested her head on her paws as she prepared to listen to her story while waiting for their food.

"I had my friends over at my spaceship but the Conductor and DJ Grooves got into a fight. We were all sent to Sehan, my home-planet, using my spaceship and my mother found us all. Her name is Ophelia, and she's the queen... so that makes me a princess! Surprise... My real name is Seraphina, if that matters." Hat Kid halfheartedly exclaimed, prompting the Empress to tilt her head in confusion.

"Princess Seraphina?" She said slowly, as if testing it out for herself.

Shaking her head, she laughs a bit and replies, "Frankly, I like Hat Kid much better. So, what made you and your friends get kicked out then? I mean, you are going to be in a movie, so you came back to your spaceship, right?"

Hat Kid swayed left and right in her chair as she looked down at the tablecloth. Almost immediately, their food came despite the fact they had only just started their conversation.

Steam was rising from the newly prepared food and Hat Kid licked her lips in hunger. It's been awhile since she's had food as good as Nyakuza Metro's, so this was somewhat exciting.

A few onlookers who have been waiting around thirty minutes now started complaining to themselves, but once the Empress made eye contact with them, they instantly shut their mouths. She was scary, to say the least.

Breaking the wooden chopsticks apart so that they could be used, the Empress notices Hat Kid struggling with them as she tried to copy what the cat-woman did by breaking them. It only ended with the little girl pulling on the sticks, but to no avail. Sighing, she secretly grabbed them and showed her how to break them the correct way. Gratefully, Hat Kid took the chopsticks back and grabbed a bundle of noodles to eat from her ramen.

The Empress ate some rice while waiting for her dumplings to cool, whereas Hat Kid was so hungry she couldn't help but eat the steaming noodles first and chew in pain. It was too tasty to let cool down, so the Empress nudged her iced tea to help her burning mouth.

Hat Kid sipped from her drink and gasped. "Oh! I didn't tell you did I? My friends and I battled my mother. She did horrible things to my home and my friends, so we ended up... leaving her on Sehan planet all alone. I can't help but feel bad for her, but Snatcher and Mustache Girl gave me some advice, so I'm feeling better about it."

For some odd reason, the Empress's eye twitched in annoyance. She stabbed her chopsticks into a Soup Dumpling and blew on it to cool it down before sneering.

"I hate women like that. They're always thinking they're too high and mighty to see how many people they're hurting because of their negligence. You do realize you had every right to leave her on that hunk of rock, right? She doesn't deserve your pity."

Nodding, Hat Kid watches the Empress take a bite of the Soup Dumpling and stare Hat Kid in the eyes.

"Although you're not able to join my gang again for obvious reasons, don't ever hesitate to come to me to voice your troubles. I'm not evil, well, not entirely. I just look out for my own."

Lifting her hot tea in the air, the Empress continues, "How about a toast for getting rid of the bad people in our lives?"

Without really meaning to, Hat Kid's eyes trailed to the Empress's eye-scar, as well as the scars on her neck. She guessed even the Empress, with how terrifying she could be, had her moments of terror and pain as well.

Lifting her iced tea as well, Hat Kid replied, "I'd love that."

Their glasses clunked together, and they both took a sip directly afterward. Sighing, the Empress put down her drink and licked her lips.

"No matter what this world does to you, you have to keep fighting. As long as you fight, you're showing the world that you're willing to put up with whatever it throws at you. For a little girl, you're strong and courageous. Come see me again sometime, and I'll treat you to another meal."

Hat Kid took a bite of the boiled egg and nodded happily, while simultaneously paying attention to the Empress and her food.

~~~~~~

When Hat Kid returned to her spaceship with three leftover soup dumplings, she put them in the fridge for safe keeping as Cooking Cat watched on. "Oh! You went to Nyakuza Metro? How was it?"

Hat Kid was tired, so when she turned to look Cooking Cat in the eyes, she blinked and yawned out, "It was fun. The Empress let me buy food on her card."

Sluggishly, Hat Kid waved goodbye and left the kitchen to get some much-needed rest. In the span of two days, she finished a movie the Conductor and DJ Grooves worked on, while also seeing all her friends again.

Making her way to her bedroom, she watched the door open and walked through the corridor where she could see Snatcher sitting there as usual. Although tired, Hat Kid wanted to make a note of her day, so when she passed by the Snatcher, she changed her usual top hat into her ice hat.

"Hey, kid-"

She instantly turned herself to ice and disappeared into her pillow fort to write in her diary during his sentence, to which he stopped midway and got back to reading.

"Alright, bye."

Pulling up her diary, she wrote, "Wow! I got so much stuff done in two days! Not only did I get to wave a cruise ship goodbye on its voyage, I also got to share a meal with the Empress! I'll keep you posted, diary! But for now, I'm afraid those are all my adventures to share!" Finishing the entry, she jumped out of her pillow fort and swam through her sea of pillows to her bed.

"Going to bed, kiddo?" He asks as she turns off the lights.

The candles, as well as his face, glowed in the darkness.

She couldn't really find the energy to speak, so all she did was nod once and crawl into bed with a stuffed C.A.W. Agent and a Mafia goon beside her.

"I may as well get back to my forest then. You're not doing my contracts and I'm almost certain my minions are making a mess of things again. I'll come back sooner or later-"

"Can't you stay?" She almost pleaded, sitting upright.

They both stayed silent for a moment before Hat Kid guiltily laid back down and snuggled into the covers. "You said you were coming back soon, right? How... soon?"

Snatcher scoffed and looked out to the stars. "When you finally decide to complete my contracts."

He plays, and Hat Kid lets out a huff. "But they're impossible."

Laughing, he begins his teleportation, and smiles. "Then I'll make them easier for you. Just consider it something out of the kindness of my heart. And don't worry, I'm coming straight back when you wake up."

Hat Kid smiles and feels relief wash over her, then settles into her bed again. "Okay. See you soon, BFF."

As the Snatcher disappears into the portal, he replies, "See ya, BFF."


End file.
